Leader Of The Pack
by Kiva Taliana
Summary: Arthur with a load of interestingly named dogs... Modern AU
1. Merlin

The guy in the expensive looking suit was not Valiant's usual kind of late night customer. One of the prostitutes lingering over a coffee eyed the blond man in speculation but he hardly seemed to notice her other than offering a polite 'good evening'.

Eira had shrugged and gone back to her coffee and the man had ordered four sausage sandwiches. Valiant had thrown the order together and when the man had paid he had eyed the full wallet enviously. It seemed the man had a desire to get himself mugged.

The man didn't seem perturbed by Valiant's staring, but judging by the way he moved the blond man could probably handle himself. Valiant knew when he could try and take advantage of someone, and he didn't think this was one of those moments. Instead he watched the man walk out, and then Valiant dismissed him for the television talking away in the corner. Eira's eyes continued to watch the blond man, wondering if it was worthwhile following him.

She watched with curiosity as he paused outside, unwrapping the sandwiches to separate the sausages from the bread. He put the sausages back in the paper bag and gathering the bread up in a napkin, almost put it into the bin. Then the man seemed to think better of it and handed the wrapped up food to a passing tramp. She watched the tramp recoil slightly, eyeing the bread with suspicion, but in the end he took it, pulling a crust off and stuffing it into his mouth as he walked on his way. The blond man headed in the other direction and Eira, for a few moments, wondered what the hell that had all been about. Then it disappeared from her mind as Sefa stuck her head through the door and told her that the traffic appeared to be increasing. Eira left her now lukewarm coffee and went back to her night's work.

Arthur hadn't been entirely oblivious to the undercurrent in the cafe. The man behind the counter looked ready to slit his throat for a few quid, and the woman had eyed him in the same way his father probably looked at business deals. Neither he felt concerned about, his years in the army had taken the edge of his fear, and he knew he could protect himself. However, he had something more important to deal with. Probably only important to him, but he headed back down the alleyway, pausing briefly to check on his car parked down the road. It looked intact, it looked innocuous and people probably expected him to drive something more impressive. He did, when he needed it, and that vehicle was his pride and joy, one of them anyway. His work car looked less than impressive, it didn't need to do anything more than get him to work, meetings and other things like that.

As he entered the alley Arthur walked slowly hoping the object of his mission hadn't taken upon itself to move.

Creeping down the alleyway Arthur listened carefully, heading towards the large bin pushed against one wall, left at an awkward angle, leaving a small gap on one side. Crouching down he peered into the gloom, as he did so he heard a rustle, then a low growl.

"Still there," he said gently. He fished out the wrapped up sausages and caught a flash of light reflected from a pair of eyes and the dog's muzzle lifted it's nostrils flaring as the smell of the meat reached it. Arthur winced as he broke a piece off, the hot meat inside burnt his fingertips and he tossed the small piece into the gloom. He watched the muzzle drop, snatching up the morsel, and the muzzle lifted, the dog stretched forward towards him, sniffing intently. The dog didn't step out from it's hiding place, clearly uncertain of him. Arthur threw another chunk of meat, letting it fall a little short of target. The dog darted swiftly to retrieve it, but then staggered back to it's place of safety. Arthur winced as he watched the dog's back-end slump, almost pitching the animal sideways. It ducked back into the space behind the bin, it's eyes fixed on him, both wary and hopeful. Arthur broke the remainder of the first sausage into two and threw the pieces in quick succession letting the dog guzzle them.

He waited until the dog ate the last piece and started to break up the next sausage, not paying direction attention to the animal, but out of the corner of his eye he felt very aware of the dog inclining forward, staying low as it crawled out of it's hiding place.

The animal hesitated as Arthur looked up. He offered another piece, letting it fall in front of the dog's nose. As that one was gobbled up Arthur threw another, then another, using up the rest of the second sausage doing so. Possibly without realising it had done so the animal had inched forward wanting more, forgetting his fear as the food kept coming.

As Arthur started the third sausage the dog jerked back as someone else staggered into the alley. Arthur inwardly cursed, turning to glare at the shabby man. Slowly he stood up, squaring his shoulders a little.

"This is my place!" the man slurred.

"I won't be long, I just want to get the dog," Arthur said.

"He ain't yours."

"Is he yours?"

"Little fucker needs a good kicking," the man spat savagely, and Arthur got the feeling the animal had probably received one or two in it's time.

"No, it does not," Arthur told him sternly and steadily. The man swayed on his feet, eyeing Arthur with unfocused but angry eyes.

"You're one of those tossers who think animals are better than people."

"Times like these," Arthur snapped back. "I'm amazed people wonder why."

He watched the tramp's eyes gleam as he pulled out his wallet and offered the man a five pound note, which was more that he deserved, Arthur thought to himself. The tramp inched forward, looking like the dog when offered the sausage.

"Go and get something to eat," Arthur informed him as the man snatched the note. "Stay away for ten minutes."

"Is that it?" the tramp asked as he eyed the note.

"If you didn't threaten people," and dogs, Arthur thought to himself. "You might get more. Now go away."

The tramp looked startled at the tone of the last three words, but he got the hint, shuffling out of the alleyway. Arthur huffed, turning back to his task, sighing as he realised the exchange had caused the dog to shuffle back into it's hiding space. However, as Arthur crouched down, the little dog crawled forward, it's eyes darted to the alley opening as a group of people wandered past, and it hesitated for a second. Arthur carried on breaking up the sausages and as the sounds faded the dog inched forward. Arthur threw a couple more snippets and then as he tossed the third, he darted forward with lightening reflexes and grabbed the dog's scruff. It gave a startled yelp and turned it's head to try and bite his arm, and he heard a rip as the dog's teeth snagged his sleeve.

He pulled the dog out, putting it onto his lap, keeping one hand on the scruff as he patted the animal down, wincing as he realised how much it's ribs pressed out. Eventually the little beast gave up, too exhausted to fight him. It lay over his thighs whimpering in distress.

"It's all right, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shock you."

After he assured himself the animal had no serious injuries he offered another morsel of food. For a moment the dog didn't take it, until it's hunger got the better of it. Arthur had a few chunks left but he decided to hold off until he had the animal in the car. He risked letting go to shrug his jacket off and he wrapped the shivering dog up. He felt the animal wriggle as he picked it up but the dog had no room to manoeuvre.

"It's okay," Arthur reassured it. "You'll be all right."

As he carried the dog away it settled in his arms, both the food and the residual warmth of Arthur's jacket gave some comfort. Plus the dog was too exhausted to fight, it rested it's head on Arthur's arm, giving a little sigh. Arthur patted the dog's flank.

"Good boy, you'll be fine."

He was greeted by a few curious looks as he left the alley wearing only his shirt in the cool weather and with the little dog wrapped up in his jacket which would probably now be ruined, not that Arthur cared. He made it to his car, and fumbled for his keys, propping the dog against his chest as he rummaged in his trouser pocket. As soon as he found them he pressed the button to unlock the door.

As he got it open he went to gently deposit the dog on the front seat. He had to hope that once settled the animal would stay still. His other car was far better for this. With his work car he would just have to make do. As he tried to put it down the dog wriggled, pushing against him determined to stay close.

"Come on little one, I'm not going to leave you."

The dog gave another whimper as Arthur released it and to compensate Arthur fed the animal another couple of pieces of sausage. He had one sliver left, which he'd give the dog once they were both in the car. Arthur shut the passenger door and jogged round to the driver's door, clambering in quickly. The dog watched him anxiously, struggling to shift round, kicking his legs to get clear of the jacket he was wrapped in. Arthur reached out and petted the dog's head.

"Stay there, stay."

He watched the ears lift, and in the slightly better light, he decided the little black dog was a lurcher. The dog's ears shifted.

"Stay," Arthur repeated and the dog's ears flickered. Arthur thought that it recognised the word, it's memory triggered, perhaps, by the gentle handling and the food. He put a hand on the dog's head stroking gently.

"Stay."

The dog stilled, ears shifting back and forth, eyes fixed on Arthur. Very slowly the dog settled down. Arthur turned the key in the ignition and set the heater up to keep both of them warm. He offered the last bit of sausage and the dog lapped it off his hand.

"Good dog."

He watched the dog's ears lift again, and Arthur guessed it had been a long time since the little lurcher had heard those words.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

The little dog slept on the way home. Arthur pulled in and parked on his driveway. The house looked quiet, lights glowing in some rooms for the occupants waiting for Arthur to come home. Either Mithian, Elena or Elyan would have been in, so they had set everything up and ensured the household was fed and happy. Arthur got his house keys ready before he picked up the dog, feeling gratified as the dog scrabbled into his arms.

"Good dog."

Arthur carried the dog to the door and opened it, leaning back to give his arm scope to reach the keyhole. The lurcher didn't seem to mind the man-handling now. It seemed to have worked out that Arthur was a safe person to be with, providing food and warmth. The little dog seemed extremely trusting, so Arthur didn't think it had been that long out on the streets, probably just long enough to lose weight, and then he had fortuitously found it. Once Arthur had got himself through the door he leant back on it to close it, shutting the real world out. He felt the little dog move, lifting it's head and flaring it's nostrils as the scents in the house hit him.

At the sound of the door the scrabbling had already started as the household ran to meet him.

They all came storming from the lounge, Percival first, until Gwaine ran past, into Percival's back legs to send the hulking Alsatian sprawling. Leon and Lancelot, as usual, missed Gwaine's exuberance, trotting slowly towards Arthur, who waded through the paws and fur, carrying his burden to the kitchen.

All the dogs followed at his heels, and Arthur hesitated in the doorway. Part of his mind had been on feeding his new charge, the other, routine part, had thought of something else, and whichever of his dog minders had been in had forgotten to pull the blind. His instinct was to look at the dog run in the back garden; but there was no point. Cenred no longer prowled out there. Arthur had been avoiding looking at it for weeks, except at the odd moments when he forgot.

He felt the tears flood his eyes and he looked down. The four dogs bustled around his legs, as they did at these moments, as if they knew what he was thinking and wanted to distract him. Gwaine scrabbled up to try and see what he had in his arms. The dog in question stirred restlessly, nervous of the other animals.

"It's all right," Arthur assured the little dog. He went to the far side of the kitchen, where the bowls were set up and he gently put the dog down, unwrapping the jacket. The little dog hunched up, ears dropping, tail pressed down between it's legs. The other dogs clustered round, sniffing and the lurcher whined as Gwaine inched closer.

"Oi, out!" Arthur ordered him. Gwaine looked somewhat surprised but he trotted back towards the others. "Sit!"

All the dogs did as they were told, still sniffing the air, and watching curiously as Arthur looked the little dog over establishing it was male, and also malnourished. There were a few bald patches on it's body and it's bones pressed out.

"Let's get you some food, then a bath. Out, you lot!" he ordered the others, pushing them out into the hallway and locking the gate to keep them out of the kitchen. They clustered around curiously and Arthur handed out some treats to keep them occupied. The little lurcher trotted across the kitchen, looking up at Arthur hopefully.

"You'll get something."

Arthur looked in the cupboard, hunting through the pouches of various food he had for something nourishing for the little dog. He followed Arthur, watching everything intently. as he put the bowl down the dog inched forward, assessing the contents.

Backing off Arthur let the little dog get on with it, and he went to the door, leaning over the gate to fuss a waiting Leon, running his hand over the setter's long silky ears. Leon gave a rumble of contentment. Gwaine jumped up to join in, the Westie scrabbling up the gate to put his head under Arthur's hand. Percival and Lancelot pushed in around them and Arthur moved his hands from dog to dog petting them all.

"Sorry boys, didn't mean to shout at you."

As they fussed around him Arthur turned to watch the little dog. He had almost eaten everything Arthur had given him, and his tail wagged gently as Arthur left the cluster of dogs by the door and went over to the lurcher and crouched down to pet his head. The tail wagging increased, almost knocking the animal over.

"Come on, let's get you cleaned up."

Arthur picked the dog up again and carried it out of the kitchen and upstairs. The others followed behind him as Arthur went into the house's second bedroom which had an en-suite like his own. However, much to his family's disapproval, most especially his father's, it had been set up exclusively for the dogs. The room had beds, rugs and toys scattered round it, and the bathroom shelves were filled with dog shampoos, flea treatments, worming tables and anything else a dog might at some point need.

"What if you have clients staying?" Uther had snapped at him, on seeing the set up of the house.

"I'll put them up in a hotel," Arthur replied. He wouldn't have let a client stay with him even if he didn't have a house full of dogs. Still, even after being told that Uther didn't approve, not of Arthur having the dogs, of how he treated them, how he kept picking up others when he found them. Arthur put the lurcher down and reached for the taps.

The moment the water started to run Percival made himself scarce, not wanting to risk getting involved in a bath. Gwaine and Lancelot eased forward, sniffing at the newcomer. The lurcher dropped his ears, giving a feeble snarl in warning.

Arthur petted Lancelot while pushing him back, away from the nervous dog. Gwaine jumped back at he was snapped at.

"Stop it," Arthur told him and the lurcher whined as Arthur rubbed the top of his head.

Once he was happy with the water he deposited the little dog in it, cupping handfuls of water to drizzle over him. The dog whined and shifted about, uncertain if the development was good or not.

Arthur dampened the dog down and put a blob of shampoo onto his hand. Glancing behind him he realised Leon and Lancelot had retreated and curled up together on one of the large beds. A scrabbling sound then a yelp made him turn in time to see Gwaine gaining purchase as he leapt up and struggled over the edge of the bath, somersaulting over as he dropped into the water. He rolled to right himself and gave a shake, peering up from under his now damp hair. Arthur screwed his eyes up as water flew everywhere.

"For God's sake! You only want a bath so I'll use the hairdryer on you."

Gwaine panted in excitement and splashed about in the water. The lurcher cringed away, Arthur took a firm hold, rubbing the shampoo in, and letting Gwaine, playing at the other end, get on with it. The only thing was, Gwaine kept easing over to try and get Arthur to scrub him. In the end he relented, and Gwaine nearly drowned himself as he rolled over to get Arthur to rub his belly.

"Idiot!" Arthur informed him, reaching down to scratch the relevant area. Gwaine wriggled, barking in delight. In the end he managed to wangle his way up to the other end of the bath to the new addition, and he sniffed at him, tail wagging eagerly. The little dog inched away, but seemed to realise that Gwaine had no intention of acting maliciously. Gwaine had a naturally friendly nature, the only dog in the house he had never taken to had been Cenred. And Cenred had not been a friendly animal anyway.

Now he was trying to encourage the lurcher to play with him, Arthur dropped a well chewed rubber toy into the water and Gwaine dived after it, growling and yapping happily as he played, splashing water everywhere as he frolicked. The lurcher stayed as clear as he could from the other dog, and Gwaine seemed to realise that he was better off just having fun on his own, except the times when he tried to get Arthur to play with him.

"You are a menace," he informed the dog, not that Gwaine gave much care to the opinion, he just wagged his tail and jumped about excitedly when Arthur started fiddling with the shower attachment to hose them off. The lurcher took it, but with his ears and tail down Arthur guessed he wasn't too happy, Gwaine, however, eagerly put himself under the spray, moving about to let Arthur get to various parts of his body.

He let the water run out, reminding himself he needed to clean the bathroom, especially after Gwaine had been let loose in it. That could wait until the morning, he had some free time before his conference call, so he could do it then. Instead he got both dogs out of the bath and he wrapped the lurcher in a fluffy towel and let him curl up in peace while Gwaine got a dose of the hairdryer.

During that time, while Gwaine indulged himself, Percival slunk back in, peering around the door warily to assess the situation before realising that Arthur was not about to try and bath him, and he trotted in, sniffing at Gwaine before moving on to look down at the damp lurcher, wrapped up in the towel. Percival assessed the cowering dog and then after a slight sniff backed off and lay down.

"Enough you," Arthur said to Gwaine deciding he was dry. Gwaine grumbled but Arthur was worn out, and it was nearly four in the morning. "No more, it's bedtime."

Gwaine grumbled to trotted off to snuggle up next to Percival. Arthur gave the lurcher another dry off and then decided, he couldn't leave the timid looking dog alone in this room, and he never minded when the rest of them followed him. He picked up the lurcher.

"Come on, then."

Gwaine was up in an instinct. Percival rolled to his feet a second later. Leon and Lancelot had to untangle themselves and ran behind as they all followed Arthur to his room.

For the sake of his own bedding the duvet was covered by a huge woollen throw that had been cheap, was easy to clean and could be covered in dog hair since Arthur didn't care about it. Arthur took the little dog with him to the bathroom as he changed and brushed his teeth.

"You're not like the others, really, since I sort of named them after knights. I don't think I can run that theme with you."

He hadn't with Cenred either, who was named after an obscure king that Arthur found on his history searches.

"You're not exactly giving up either, are you?" Arthur said to the dog now crouched by his feet, tail wagging gently. He sloshed his mouth with mouthwash and moved back, letting the little dog follow and he picked it up to put it on the bed. Arthur then had a battle with a sprawled out Percival for possession of the bed. Arthur let the lurcher cuddle up against his chest and since Gwaine couldn't take that prime spot he snuggled himself into Arthur's navel. Leon sprawled at the end of the bed, Percival lay at Arthur's back and Lancelot slotted between Gwaine and Leon. If his father walked in, Arthur mused, he'd hit the roof, and Arthur, didn't care. Instead he gently stroked the new addition.

"You're not very knightly, but you're strong enough to survive. I think you're a Merlin."

Merlin seemed to agree as he moved his muzzle to lick Arthur's chin, before settling down to sleep in the warm, nice smelling place.


	2. Lancelot Is A Tart

With his second bathroom clean and his conference call dealt with Arthur loaded Merlin and Lancelot, as moral support, into the back of his 4X4. Merlin looked upset by the whole thing. Lancelot panted happily, probably guessing where they were going.

Arthur had easily made the appointment with Gwen and parked up outside the neat, low lying building. As he opened the back and put the lead on Lancelot's collar, he jumped out and waited eagerly, his tail flicking back and forth. Merlin was less forthcoming, huddling in the back, clearly nervous of what was to happen next. It was one of the reasons Arthur had brought the sturdy Labrador with him. Lancelot was a calm steady presence, who didn't have any fear of where they were about to go.

He clipped another lead onto Merlin's collar, and old one of Gwaine's that he had punched a new hole into, for the time being. He had ordered some new equipment online, but it would not arrive until tomorrow, so Merlin had to make do for the moment. He gently lifted Merlin out and placed him down on the floor, his haunches dropped, tail and ears pressed low.

"You'll be fine, Gwen's nice."

Lancelot's tail picked up speed and he trotted towards the door ahead of Arthur and Merlin, the little lurcher stayed as close as possible to Arthur as he led them along. He opened the door, and wasn't surprised to find the waiting area quiet, he had got a special appointment, since they knew him so well, and he was a major contributor to the charity fund they ran. Elena sat behind the desk, fielding a phone call, and she winked at him as she saw him. As she talked she rose up from her chair to look down at the dark, quivering dog who was practically hanging onto Arthur's ankle.

'Aww cute!' she mouthed at him before sitting back down and going through the appointment she had made for whoever was on the phone. As she hung up she grinned at Arthur.

"Gwen's shouldn't be long. I'm guessing your 'straydar' is still in good working order then."

"So it seems," Arthur said. "Found him behind a bin in an alleyway. I followed him after I almost knocked him over with the car."

"You're a softie," Elena informed him. "How's the rest of your mob? I haven't been in to do them for a bit."

"Who was it last night?" Arthur asked.

"Elyan, why?"

Arthur shrugged, feeling a little uncomfortable. "Nothing really, he just didn't pull the blind in the kitchen."

"No one can see the back of your house though, the garden... oh." Elena paused as she got the hint about Arthur's fragile emotions. "I'm back on the rota for you soon, I've done a bit more here recently instead, I won't forget."

"I know I'm being silly..." Arthur started, although Elena looked as though she didn't find it the least bit silly. However, Gwen distracted them by appearing through the examination room door. Lancelot strained against the lead as he saw her, wagging his tail in delight at the sight of her.

"Hello, you," she said to him. The tail wagging infected his entire back end. Arthur let himself be pulled towards Gwen, with little Merlin a reluctant follower.

"Come on in," she said turning to go into the room. Arthur led the dogs in, or rather Lancelot led him in and Arthur coaxed Merlin. Gwen had sat on the stool by her computer, bringing up Arthur's files. Lancelot sat at her feet and stared up at her with huge, adoring eyes. Gwen reached to the tub of dog treats she had on her counter and offered him one. Lancelot lifted his paw and placed it on her wrist before taking the treat off her hand. Then he settled back down, fixing his gaze on her.

"You're a tart," Arthur told Lancelot before reaching down to lift Merlin up onto the table. Merlin curled up as much as he could. Gwen grimaced slightly as she looked at him.

"Underweight definitely," she said, before turning to the screen again. "What have you called this one? Merlin. I like it."

She got up and moved to the other side of the bench, opposite Arthur, running her hands over Merlin, and offering him a treat. Merlin pulled back a little, clearly not too trusting.

"Don't like vets then?" Gwen said, she put the treat on the table and went to get her stethoscope. Merlin sniffed it tentatively, looking around, still very unsure.

"Can you just put him on the scales, let's see how much he weighs."

Arthur picked him up and put him down on the scales in the corner. Merlin whined, and Arthur petted his head gently.

"It's all right."

Merlin didn't look very convinced. Gwen looked at the display with concerned eyes before nodding at Arthur. Arthur picked Merlin up again to put him back on the table. Lancelot got on the scales and sat down, looking up at Gwen. She eyed the display, since he was there.

"You're a very good weight," Gwen informed him.

"Creep," Arthur told Lancelot. Ignoring him Lancelot hopped off and followed Gwen.

"Stop insulting your very nice dog," Gwen told Arthur sternly before listening to Merlin's heart rate.

"That's high, but I think that's stress. Let's have a look to see if he's got a microchip."

Arthur petted and fussed Merlin while Gwen went through the rigmarole of a full examination, also giving him inoculations, a worming tablet - after which Arthur managed to persuade him to eat the treat - and a flea treatment.

"I'll get Elena to gather some stuff for the others as well. Do you want one?"

Gwen managed to worm Lancelot with a minimum of fuss by offering him the tablet. So eager to please her Lancelot swallowed it without hesitation. The Labrador also snuffled his nose against the edge of the table, looking up at Merlin, and sticking close to Gwen as if to point out there was nothing to be scared of. Merlin seemed to remain very unconvinced, only staying settled if Arthur was there to hold him.

"I'll run a blood test on him to check everything is functioning. He's only young so I can guess he's all right. I'll let you know the results later on today."

"Sure."

"Since the owners didn't bother to microchip him it will be hard to find them. I'll put him on our books just in case any queries come in, and do the usual, but I doubt we'll get an answer."

Arthur didn't comment, Gwen clearly read his mind.

"Although you would clearly prefer that we didn't."

He pulled Merlin closer, and the little dog snuggled against his torso. "All things considered I don't think they cared about him much, they clearly didn't deserve him."

Gwen smiled.

"Well, he's got you now."

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

As he led them out of the examination room, Lancelot whining mournfully at being separated from Gwen, and her treats, Arthur wondered if Merlin was convinced of that fact. Again he stayed as close as possible to Arthur, brushing his leg as if reminding him that he was still there. He got them both to the counter and rummaged for his wallet to pay for everything. Lancelot swivelled and hoisted his front end up to rest his paws on the counter, he peered over at Elena, rump swinging as his tail wagged.

"You are a womaniser," Arthur informed his Labrador. Lancelot tilted his head to look up at Arthur, tongue lolling out of his mouth as he panted. By the look on his face, Lancelot didn't care.

"He's only got eyes for Gwen," Elena said with a smirk as Gwen appeared from the examination room and Lancelot nearly fell over as his wagging went up tenfold. He dropped down and strained to get near her again. She obligingly came round to fuss him. Lancelot gave rumbles of contentment as she petted him.

"You are so soppy," she told the dog. Lancelot lay down and rolled to get Gwen to rub his belly. Arthur rolled his eyes.

"I brought you as reassurance for Merlin, not so you could flirt with the vet."

Back legs flailing as Gwen scratched him, Lancelot was clearly unconcerned about Arthur's grumbles. Gwen stopped rubbing his belly and reached out to pet Merlin. Merlin gave a growl, and Gwen hesitated. Arthur bent down, running his hand over Merlin's head.

"No," he told the little dog sternly. "People are nice."

"Vets are generally not considered so," Gwen said. But after a moment she reached out and petted Merlin's head. He rumbled uncertainly, but made no aggressive gestures. She offered him another treat, and after some hesitation, Merlin took it, then he shuffled as close to Arthur as possible. Gwen watched him.

"I think he's decided you're nice."

"Arthur is nice," Elena agreed from overhead. Arthur let Merlin sit on his feet and slowly stood up again. Gwen stayed down, fussing Lancelot.

"Thank you," Arthur said. "By the way, are two of you free on Sunday afternoon?"

Elena frowned, grabbed her diary and flipped through it. "Me and Mith... about twoish."

"Could you come and take the pack out, give them a long run in the forest. You can take the 4X4 to drive them out there."

"Sure," she said, jotting it down. "I would presume that you would have done it on a Sunday. You're not working are you?"

Arthur shook his head. "No, my father has managed to invite himself and my sister to Sunday lunch, which means I have no chance of getting away to go out, and it might be easier if the dogs aren't there for a bit. Well four of them, I'll keep Merlin with me, I don't think he's up to that just yet."

"Right so two, or just after. We'll block out a couple of hours. What time is your dad getting there?"

"Half twelve, or one o'clock, thereabouts."

"If we can shift things around to come a little earlier, and get the mob away quicker we'll do it."

"Thanks, anytime is fine."

"No worries, see you Sunday," Elena said handing him is receipt. Arthur pocketed everything and eased his feet out from under Merlin. The little lurcher slowly stood up, but stayed as close as he could. Arthur tugged on Lancelot's lead.

"Get up you whore," he told the dog.

Lancelot grumbled but rolled over and lumbered up. As Arthur led them out Lancelot moved slowly, gazing at Gwen longingly.

"Give over," Arthur told him hefting his love-sick Labrador out and gently urging an uncertain Merlin. As he took them towards the car he looked down at Merlin, who looked scared of the huge dark vehicle that Arthur used to transport the dogs. But Arthur just wondered if it looked too dark to reassure the little dog, until he took him closer and opened the back. Again, Lancelot just hefted himself in. Merlin made no move, staring up at Arthur apprehensively. Arthur reached down to gently lift him up and place him in the back with Lancelot. The labrador had already sprawled out and he shifted to allow Merlin a little more space. As Arthur shut the cage and closed the door, Merlin looked at him pitifully, in such a way that made Arthur want to fling the doors open again and hang onto him.

As that was impractical, he got into the driver's seat and set off. He heard Merlin whine as he drove, scrabbling in the back, to presumably get to him.

"It's all right, Merlin, I'm still here."

The scrabbling stopped for a moment, and Arthur probably looked slightly insane on the way home as he chatted to the back end of his car. Merlin seemed to settle, or at least he had gone quiet. Which, Arthur decided, was not the same thing.

On reaching home he opened the back and Lancelot hopped out, pausing to cock his leg on the back passenger side tyre. Merlin, huddled up, tentatively peered out, eyes fixing on Arthur apprehensively. Picking him up and putting him on the floor he watched Merlin sniff around, staying close to Arthur again as he locked the car up. But he saw Merlin's tail wag slightly as he sniffed, and he trotted at Arthur's side, his stride gaining in confidence as they headed towards the front door.

It made Arthur wonder. Merlin clearly didn't like the car. There were dogs that didn't like travelling, but having spent so long, watching the others, and previous dogs, he wondered. Had Merlin's owners driven somewhere and just dumped him, knowing that he would not have been able to find his way home.

Merlin trotted merrily in as Arthur opened the door and the familiar smells greeted him. It enforced the nugget of belief as to how Merlin ended up dumped in the city centre. He would have to take Merlin out a few times to get him over that. Still, Merlin was young, it would hopefully be easy to train him and Merlin appeared trusting of Arthur, his life had probably not started out too badly.

As they entered the other three came running down the stairs. Gwaine pelted towards them and Lancelot took the precaution of sitting down so Gwaine bashed into his sturdy flank. Gwaine sprawled on the floor, giving a huff of irritation at being foxed. He rolled and got up sniffing around Merlin. Merlin's tail gave a tentative wag and he snuffled his nose against Gwaine's.

"Right, dinner," Arthur said, which caused a flurry of movement to the kitchen. After a moment's pause Gwaine charged after the other three, while Merlin stayed with Arthur. As they entered the kitchen Arthur smiled as the established dogs were all sat in their set positions where their bowls would be placed.

"Good lads."

They all wagged their tails, tongues lolling in anticipation. Arthur guided Merlin over to the same area.

"Sit down, sit." He coaxed Merlin into position, gently manoeuvring his backside down. Merlin sat and Arthur stood up. He turned to the cupboard full of dog food and then turned back to find Merlin half up, inching towards him.

"Sit," Arthur ordered gently, but firmly. Merlin put his backside down again. "Stay."

Arthur turned away again to get out packets of food, organising the bowls. As with every other room in the house, barring his study, there was space for the dogs. They had their own cupboards, and a fridge-freezer dedicated to their food. Arthur filled bowls, working methodically, the routine calming him, focussing his mind on the dogs needs and care. He always found it soothing.

For the moment he had stuff he could give to Merlin, but his own specialist food would come tomorrow in the order. Again his father would complain about him spending money on the dogs, but Arthur had money, he had earned it and he had nothing else that he needed to spend it on. He had asked his father, in one moment of stubborn daring, what he thought Arthur should spend it on.

"Preparing, setting yourself up, settling down."

"I am settled, I have my house. I'm secure."

"You're on your own Arthur."

"No, I'm not."

"Don't be ridiculous Arthur. I meant a woman, a wife; and children."

"I'm not looking."

"You want children, don't you? That needs a woman."

"NO! I'm not going to think about that. I'm fine, I'm happy."

"How can you be..."

Because the dogs sat there, demanding, but also undemanding, sure of the fact that Arthur would provide, they would wait patiently, as Arthur paused, the conversation running through the dark part of his mind. All except Merlin, who had snuck forward to sit on Arthur's feet. The sudden weight snapped Arthur out of his contemplation.

"Silly," Arthur said extracting his feet out from under Merlin, and his mind from the conversation. He put Merlin's bowl down first, leading the little dog back where he had been originally sat, and then Arthur doled out the rest of the bowls, and each dog dived onto their food in a flurry of chomping and tail wagging. Arthur rummaged in his own fridge for something he could microwave. He'd eat an apple afterwards to be healthy and throw a few balls around the garden for the dogs, facing the fact that the dog run, which he had tried to avoid, was out there.

Perhaps he could take it down after his father and sister had gone home on Sunday.

Perhaps.


	3. Sunday Lunch

When his father came for lunch Arthur made an effort. He knew how to cook, but was there any point to it when it was just him? Arthur had never told his father that his cooking, generally, went on the dogs. And as with every roast that Arthur made, when Uther invited himself, Arthur always bought stuff for his brood. The butcher he went to knew that now and always put something aside, also leaving a collection of bones so when he got home and sifted through it his kitchen ended up looking like a autopsy.

He got that part out of the way on Saturday, and he would give the bones out when the dogs came back from their walk with Elena and Mithian. Arthur didn't like the idea of using the dog minders when he was at home, but he didn't want the dogs to miss out, and Arthur didn't like the atmosphere when his father was around the animals. He had to shut them out of rooms, when they were so used to wandering around unrestrained. Of course there were occasions that it was required, but he didn't think Sunday afternoon with his family should be one of them.

As Arthur heard the doorbell he turned to the animals lingering in the kitchen.

"Out, go on now."

Lancelot, Leon and Gwaine went bounding out as Arthur threw treats and toys. Percival already lay out on the patio, sprawled in the sun. Arthur aimed a treat at him, it dropped on the patio by the dog's muzzle and he lazily started chewing. Gwaine bounded over, holding his own treat and he settled next to the bigger dog.

The doorbell chimed again, in a way that told Arthur his father pressed it. For some reason his doorbell always held a hint of impatience when Uther used it. Arthur dropped a treat by Merlin and headed out to answer it.

Merlin remained curled up in the bed. He had run round with the others earlier on but he tired out easily, which Arthur understood. He had let Merlin cosy up on his lap while he had finished his morning coffee and then settled him in the basket - another cast off from a previous dog - which Arthur had washed specially. Merlin did now, also, sport a very fetching blue collar. Arthur had bought him two, the blue and a red. He'd also ordered two warm coats in the came colours. He had tried the red one on for size, a little big on Merlin at the moment, but once he got stronger Arthur decided that Merlin would look quite splendid in it.

All thoughts of doggy purchases flew from Arthur's mind as he opened the door to Uther and Morgana. His father eyed him disapprovingly.

"There you are."

Arthur wondered if he was supposed to wait by the door ready to open it when they arrived, like a butler.

"Yes," Arthur said mildly.

Uther swept into the hall and looked around.

"The dogs are in the garden," Arthur informed him primly.

"Hello Arthur," Morgana said, pausing to kiss his cheek as she walked in.

"Would you like a drink?" Arthur asked, hoping to settle them in the lounge while he carried on in the kitchen.

"With lunch," Uther said looking into Arthur's lounge. Arthur glanced into the dining room, he had already set the table up, polishing everything until it shone, if there was a smear his father would find it, and he had dusted and ran the vacuum cleaner everywhere but if there was a speck then... Arthur didn't care, he forgot all of that as Uther turned and grimaced. Merlin hadn't taken to Arthur's absence, and had come to fine him, creeping out into the hallway, hunching up and looked just as feeble as he currently was.

"What is that?" Uther asked, which was derogatory enough to gird Arthur's backbone.

"He's Merlin," Arthur said, moving closer and Merlin tottered out to meet him, brushing against Arthur's leg as he eyed the newcomers warily. Arthur reached down and petted Merlin's head. "Dafty, I'm coming back now. Go on."

Gently nudging Merlin round he walked towards the kitchen, Merlin trotted at his side, while Arthur felt very aware of the two people following behind. He got Merlin back to the basket, and very ostentatiously went to wash his hands before he went back to cooking. Glancing out of the window he checked the other dogs. Leon and Lancelot were chasing a football about, while Gwaine had persuaded a lazing Percival to play tug-of-war. It required nothing from the large dog other than to hold the toy in his jaws while Gwaine flailed at the other end, tugging and growling as he yanked. The Alsatian's bulk meant he could lay as he was, and the smaller terrier made no impression. Arthur smirked as he watched Gwaine thrashing about, looking, for all the world, as if he was determined to wrest the toy from Percival. However, if Percival let go, Gwaine would slump dejectedly, the wind taken out of his sails by Percival relinquishing the prize. For the most part, Percival obligingly held on until Gwaine had finished.

Uther didn't even look out of the window. Morgana paused by the open back door, the low gate secured across it to prevent the dogs running in. Gwaine slowed his tussling to look at her, but didn't come over, knowing he would get no response from her. The only one that did was Leon, whom Morgana would diffidently stroke, being the only one with a pedigree and papers to prove it. He had been Arthur's first dog, from a friend of Uther's who could no longer manage him.

Gwaine went back to tugging on the toy and the others carried on. They knew the routine well enough, and understood about the presence of these two particular visitors.

Tucked up in his basket, Merlin had yet to learn that.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Arthur had only gone to add a couple of touches to the table. He had decanted the wine, so he needed to bring that through and gather the serving bowls for the vegetables. His father and sister had sat in the kitchen, the talking seeming to be entirely congenial. Uther asking business related questions, which Arthur answered easily, and he deflected Morgana's more personal, very carefully asked, queries.

However, Arthur detected the edge to both their conversations.

The yelp caused Arthur to drop a bowl, it cracked on the edge of the table and tumbled to the floor. Arthur, by reflex, went to grab hold, caught one side, feeling a sharp pain on his fingers and then let it drop as he heard Gwaine yapping.

He ran into the kitchen, skidding to a halt as he looked at Gwaine, then his father and then Merlin cowering against the fridge/freezer by the door, which housed all the dog food. Between Merlin and Uther lay a puddle of liquid. Merlin shuffled back as Uther shifted, ears dropping, and he gave a whine. Gwaine's yapping upped a notch. Arthur looked at his father's body language.

"Did you just kick my dog?!" Arthur roared.

Merlin had been shuffling along the cabinets to get to him, but he hesitated, whining again as he heard Arthur raise his voice. The little dog hunched, walking backwards and sprawling as he lost his balance. Arthur watched his father half react on reflex and then back up.

"You did you bastard!"

Arthur stormed forward, getting to a shivering, whimpering Merlin and abruptly sat on the floor, crossing his legs and pulling Merlin onto his lap gently petting him. Merlin pressed close, licking at him and whining. Arthur petted his head and looked at the puddle of urine by the door. He looked up at his father.

"Didn't you think to open the gate for him, or was that beneath you?!"

"The filthy animal should not be in here!"

Arthur glared up at his father, feeling the edges of his vision darken. Merlin squirmed and whined. Arthur held onto him.

"If you cannot treat the inhabitants of his house with respect, then get out."

Oh God, Arthur thought, he wasn't just referring to the dogs. His father walked into this house, looking at everything, and deciding it was substandard whatever Arthur did. He exhaled, giving a growl that would have given any of the dogs a run for their money.

"Get out!" he snarled at Uther, through gritted teeth. Then his jaw unlocked so he could shout at the top of his voice. "Go on, piss off, dad!"

Arthur wrapped his arms around a whimpering Merlin. The other dogs had responded to Gwaine's yapping and had run onto the patio. They clustered at the back door their concern evident.

"Arthur," Morgana said gently.

"Piss off!" Arthur hissed at her.

Uther was already walking to the door, striding away from his son. Morgana looked at his back and then at Arthur.

"Arthur, will you be..?"

"Fuck off you sycophantic bitch!"

Arthur snarled with venom and it was hard not to take it to heart but she knew she couldn't blame him.

"Morgana!" Uther roared from the hallway.

"I'm coming!" she yelled and then hesitated. She could tell Uther to go to hell and say she was going to look after Arthur but as he looked up at her she failed in that resolution as she saw the hatred in Arthur's eyes.

"Okay, I'll call Gaius," she said before running after Uther.

Arthur didn't care, he just felt the darkness invading his vision. He needed the dogs. Merlin pressed against him, whining needily, but it wasn't enough, Arthur needed more. He reached out to try and pull on the gate. His hand couldn't quite reach and Arthur couldn't comprehend for a moment. Then the dogs took charge.

Like everything else in the house that had encountered Cenred the gate would never be the same again, after the heavy-weight Rottweiler had taken it on. The other dogs respected it because it was a boundary Arthur lay out. At this point, with the dog's anxiety peaking, decisions were taken and Percival rumbled and then slammed himself against the gate. He didn't quite measure up to Cenred's muscled bulk, but that dog had been the forerunner. The Alsatian hit it at the right angle and it swung in, slamming into Arthur's grasping hand. Arthur gasped as the pain jolted up his arm, but as it hit his darkening mind it was easily dismissed and his hand instead registered the calming sensation of Percival's fur. The dog gave a rather concerned rumble as Arthur's arm locked around his neck, dragging him close, but he didn't resist. Leon and Lancelot fussed around, whining, licking at Arthur, and generally making their presence felt. Gwaine lumbered under them all, shoving Merlin over slightly to join him in Arthur's lap. Putting his front paws on Arthur's chest Gwaine stretched up to lick his jaw. Arthur seemed to realise they were all there, his hands grappling to get them as close as possible, but he stayed on the floor, holding onto the thick furs for dear life, as the carefully prepared dinner cooked on, totally ignored.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Elena pressed the doorbell again, frowning as there was no response. Mithian lingered behind him. With a little juggling they had shifted the schedules, so Mithian could see Alice, and her mad fat Pomeranian, later and Elena only needed to go in and feed Mr Cornelius's' cat. Arthur's request was more work, and both of them decided getting the dogs away earlier was better.

Except no one was answering the door.

"Mr Pendragon's car isn't here," Mithian said, unnecessarily, since Arthur's drive only held his two cars.

"Do you think they went out?" Elena said.

"No, Arthur would have told us if he was going to be out. Shall we go round the back?" Mithian said. "I can't hear the dogs either."

And when Uther appeared, that was where they usually were. Both girls exchanged a long look before Mithian rummaged into her bag and produced the set of keys she had to Arthur's house.

"Are you sure we should?"

"If we're wrong we'll apologise," she said. Elena fidgeted a little nervously, but she stepped aside to allow the other girl to open the door. Mithian swung the door open and then knocked on it loudly before calling out.

"Hello! Arthur?"

For a moment there was silence, and the girl wrinkled her nose.

"Is that burning?" Elena asked. Mithian stepped over the threshold and then paused in the hallway as Leon padded to the kitchen door, his teeth were slightly bared, ears back on his head. But as he saw the two women, his stance altered, and his tail wagged gently. Then he turned and went back into the kitchen. Mithian and Elena exchanged a look, and Leon reappeared in the doorway, looking as if he was almost questioning their hesitation. The two of them strode to the kitchen doorway and came to an abrupt halt. Elena had clocked the laid table in the dining room on her way past, which meant that Arthur was expecting his family.

"Bloody hell!" Mithian swore as she looked at the dinner cooking itself to death and Arthur, still cross-legged on the floor, clinging to half of his brood of dogs, the others gathered around. Gwaine yapped at the sight of them. The three bigger dogs regarded them hopefully.

"Arthur?"

Both of them hesitated as they saw the glazed anger in his eyes. They glanced at each other and inched forward.

"Arthur?" Elena repeated gently. The only advantage they had was the dogs knew them, and would react in a friendly fashion, which was something Arthur would register. As she got closer Elena realised Arthur had been crying.

"Crap!" Mithian said as a timer went off, beeping frantically. She went to the cooker and started to turn off the dials. "I'll deal with this, and make some sense of it. You feed Arthur that wine."

Mithian nodded at the decanter, and the glasses next to it. Elena thought brandy or something might be better, but the wine was to hand. She ignored the elegant glasses Arthur had got out and found a tumbler, pouring half the decanter into it. Then she went over and plonked herself on the floor in front of Arthur, for a moment she was glared at, then Leon snuffled against her and she petted the Setter's head. Gwaine shifted in Arthur's lap and Percival and Lancelot inched towards her.

"Arthur?" Elena said again. Merlin whined. Arthur blinked, and something in his eyes shifted, the angry veil dropping slightly. "Here." Elena offered out the glass. "Not for you," she told a curious Gwaine.

"Hang on," said Mithian, pausing from marshalling the mess, she went to the cupboard where the treats lived, grabbed enough chew sticks and handed them out. Again Arthur blinked and looked up at her, jumping in shock at the sight of her.

"When did you...?"

"You didn't answer the door, and I had the keys," Mithian said. "We let ourselves in."

Arthur turned and looked at Elena, who waved the glass of wine at him.

"Drink some of that."

Arthur manoeuvred himself to take the glass. Gwaine hoisted himself out of Arthur's lap and transferred himself to Elena's. She ruffled his fur and he rolled to expose his belly. The other dogs seemed to slowly relax, except Merlin, who whined again. Arthur petted him gently.

"What happened?" Mithian said as she gingerly opened the cooker. "This looks all right, I can probably salvage some dinner for us. Me and Els were going to stop for a burger after taking your mob out, but I don't think they are going out today, and it won't matter when I get to the 'mad mandrake'."

Elena sniggered as she referred to Alice's Pomeranian. "Interesting description."

"That dog is Satan's lapdog," Mithian announced.

"I've now got an image of a devil, with a dog filled man-bag," Elena mused. Arthur snorted a laugh, almost inhaling the wine. He paused, coughed and then took a mouthful.

"You back with us now?" Elena asked him, very directly. Shirking around Arthur was never productive.

"Just about."

"What did your dad do?" Mithian asked, just as directly as she pulled the roasting tray out of the oven and peered at the beef joint, examining it from several angles.

"He kicked Merlin for peeing on the kitchen floor," Arthur said.

Both girls knew it was a longer story than that, but that little fact was enough for now.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

The setting sun found Arthur, spanner in hand, dismembering Cenred's dog cage. It wasn't exactly the personal property of the Rottweiler, Arthur had originally bought it for Leon, when he had first got him. Then the gentle natured Setter had simply taken up residence in the house, and Arthur had only built the thing, around the huge kennel he had also pointlessly bought for Leon, when he had taken Cenred in. From the beginning it had been obvious that the Rottweiler would never be anything close to civilised.

Lunch had ended up a pleasant affair, with them eating on the patio, the dogs sprawled around them, chewing on their bones. Merlin had looked as if he wasn't entirely sure what to do with his, but he seemed to get the idea. Naturally he wriggled under the table to sit at Arthur's feet, an action to which neither of Arthur's guests turned a hair. They had also given him most of the wine, so he ended up a little tipsy, sitting out on the patio while they washed up and tidied everything away, so it now looked as if the disastrous dinner never happened.

After they had gone Arthur continued to sit on the patio, dozed a little and still felt a little drunk when he roused again. But he was contentedly surrounded by the dogs and determined to do something useful with what remained of the day - a zeal probably connected to the wine consumption - and he decided, he did feel up to letting the Cenred part of his life end. Hence, he took the big cage down.

The dogs watched him, wandering around and getting in the way, slightly unhelpfully, but Arthur didn't mind. He was in the chaos of trying to roll up the chain-link mesh which had been attached to the skeleton of the cage when the dogs gave a bark and trotted to the side gate. Arthur heard it click.

"Back here!" Arthur shouted. The four dogs in question ran back, Merlin hadn't moved. But Leon, working as rearguard turned, and his tail wagged, tentatively. The response indicated he knew the visitor, and the individual was acceptable in their territory.

"Gaius!" Arthur said in surprise. Then in the fog of his memory he remembered his sister saying something about calling him. The old doctor paused, looking a little wary of the animals, even though he knew not a single one of them would do anything aggressive. Gwaine yapped and chased his own tail for a minute or so, which provided a distraction from the awkwardness as Gaius said.

"I received a message from Morgana. It didn't seem very clear, but she did think you were having one of your..."

"Mental moments..." Arthur snapped.

Gaius raised his eyebrows. "...Downswings," he said, his disapproval of Arthur's description clear.

"Sorry, yeah, I had a row with dad. He kicked Merlin. Could you just look at him?" Arthur asked quickly, as he remembered the kick. Although it was the focus of the afternoon, he realised, with horror, that he hadn't really looked the little dog over.

"I am not a vet," Gaius said as he hobbled over to the patio. The comment was made entirely without rancour, and it wasn't that the doctor didn't want to look the animal over, he just couldn't guarantee that he would locate any problems accurately.

Arthur abandoned the uncooperative mess of mesh and picked up Merlin. Carrying him over Arthur gently put Merlin on the table, so Gaius wouldn't have to bend down to assess his patient.

"What happened to your hand?" Gaius asked, not missing a trick.

"I broke a bowl and tried to catch it," Arthur said looking at the cut, which had opened slightly during the manual work. Gaius prodded Merlin first, which caused Merlin to whine, snarl and snap his jaws. Arthur held onto him, petting his head.

"Gaius is doing his best."

"Bruising I think. I can feel a lump, but it's on muscle. A compress might have helped at the time but now it's probably not worth it. He's been walking fine."

Arthur blinked and thought about that. "Yes, he's been following me around for the last hour or so." Merlin had, while trying to stay out of Arthur's way. Nothing in the way the dog had walked around alerted Arthur to a problem, and he knew his dogs. Even though he had had custody of Merlin for less than a week, Arthur had watched the little, nervous, dog all that time.

"Right then, you, let's look at that cut."

"It's fine," Arthur said, curling up his hand.

"I don't doubt that it is, and that you need no treatment for it. But I'd rather like to look all the same."

Arthur held out his hand. Gaius looked at it.

"You cleaned it straight away."

"No, but Elena did later on."

Gaius peered more intently. "I presume you touched the dogs, which does not imply," he added as he felt Arthur tense, "that there is anything wrong, but bare that in mind if there is any change, swelling or redness, or pain."

"It's fine."

"I'm sure it will be; what about your head?"

"I know I... zoned out a bit. Then Mithian and Elena came, I'd arranged for them to take the dogs out, but they stayed and had lunch with me and played with the dogs for a bit."

Two people, who by their actions, would help Arthur, because they were used to the dogs, the dogs were used to them and liked them.

"Do you want a coffee?" Arthur suddenly said. "I have some wine left but not much and..."

"I'm driving, so coffee is fine. Did you drink much wine?"

"Most of the bottle, well at least half of it."

"Perhaps you should have a coffee as well, my boy, and," Gaius paused to stare at the mess Arthur had made in the garden, which the dogs were now sniffing around. Leon cocked his leg on the side of the kennel, turning to sniff the result with some satisfaction. "What the devil are you doing?!"

Arthur shrugged.

"Therapy."


	4. Afternoon Off

Arthur decided he was taking Tuesday afternoon off work. He worked a little later on Monday just to make sure he could block the time out in his diary. The dogs hadn't got their walk on Sunday, so Arthur decided, Tuesday afternoon was perfect.

Gwaine alerted the others to the plan as he trotted into the hall and saw Arthur checking his small rucksack and organising the dog leads. He went into a frenzy, yapping and chasing his tail before sideswiping Leon, who had come out of the kitchen to see what all the fuss was about. The setter grumbled and scrabbled to his feet, chasing the smaller dog about. Gwaine's yapping went up a notch as the excitement of a chase got to him. By this time, Lancelot and Percival had appeared as well, tails wagged eagerly, Percival giving a few rumbling barks to accompany the yapping, as they all realised Arthur was taking them out, which was, Arthur realised as he watched the reactions, far better than any of the dog-walkers doing so. In the dog's collective opinion.

Merlin, of course, understood nothing of their reactions, watching Arthur with his huge, anxious eyes as he waited to see what was about to happen. Arthur pulled out Merlin's blue coat and compared it with the collar on his neck.

"The red one will be better," Arthur said, deciding to take the coat. Merlin still wasn't strong, and Arthur didn't want him getting a chill on top of everything else. The day was not entirely cold, but the wind would make areas of the walk a little chilly, and Merlin didn't have enough flesh on his bones to keep himself warm.

It took Arthur a few minutes to sort everything out, and then pull on his thick socks and sturdy hiking boots. The dogs panted and wagged their tails as they waited, before Arthur gathered them all up and herded them outside.

Then he encounter a slight conundrum. The back of the 4X4 held the three large dogs comfortably enough, and Gwaine never minded tucking himself up in with them. But adding Merlin to the pile would be pushing the use of the space a little, not that any of the dogs would cause trouble snuggling up in the back. On the other hand, he didn't want to put Merlin on the backseat on his own. As he opened the back Percival, Lancelot and Leon all jumped in. Gwaine sprang up, too small to reach, due to the angle of the car back, so he leapt up against Arthur, pushing his front paws against Arthur's thigh before he dropped again.

"You can share with Merlin," Arthur informed him. Gwaine sat down and wagged his tail, tilting his head as he listened to Arthur's voice. The terrier yapped in confusion as Arthur shut the back, Percival's nose pressed against the window, peering at Gwaine as he jumped up again.

"Come on," Arthur ordered him, opening the backdoor. Gwaine leapt onto the seat, snuffling his nose into the leather, then he eased his paws up onto the backrest to sniff at the dogs in the back, barking at them. Percival gave a corresponding rumble, turning in the space to peer into the car, unable to see Gwaine, but following the noise as the little dog yapped again. . Arthur looked down at Merlin, hesitating by the open door.

"And you, in," Arthur said giving Merlin a chance to try jumping in himself if he felt up to it. He tentatively jumped up, placing his front paws on the lower edge of the door and he peered in, head bobbing as he sniffed. Gwaine dropped down and yapped, wagging his tail and snuffling forward to look down at Merlin. Merlin dropped again and looked up at Arthur, who started to reach down to hoist Merlin in. However, as he bent over, Merlin seemed to realise what was going on and he dropped back onto his haunches and sprang up to land on the seat, crashing into Gwaine, who didn't retreat quick enough. There was a moment of scrabbling but the two dogs easily separated themselves, and Gwaine didn't seem to have taken the collision personally, he just sniffed at Merlin and wagged his tail. Merlin turned to look at Arthur, who gave him a pat on the head.

"Good boy, lie down now."

Gwaine did instantly, Merlin sat, still looking a little confused but Arthur shut the door on him and Merlin shifted, looking at Gwaine and then back up at Arthur as he clambered into the driver's seat, checking he had everything in his rucksack. There was panting, tails thumping, huffs and shuffling as he revered the large vehicle out and headed off down the road.

The drive took a little while, but it was always entertaining, especially if Arthur drove past any cars with children in, and he could smile at the excitement on their faces as the sight of the three dogs, and occasionally Gwaine popping his head up like a jack-in-a-box to see what was going on. Arthur glanced back occasionally to check everything was all right, especially Merlin, who had taken the hint and curled up, but kept his eyes fixed steadily on Arthur.

Arthur drove to the edge of the large forest, parking at the far end of the small car park, out of the way of most other people. Letting the dogs out he tethered them to the back of the car while he sorted everything out. They all watched him eagerly, even Merlin had changed from nervous to curious, realising that Arthur had no intention of dumping him.

"Right you lot," Arthur said as he hefted his rucksack onto his shoulder and gathered up the leads, debating the best way to work this.

Walking his four dogs was a slightly complicated feat. Lancelot, Percival and Leon had worked out that walking in an organised straight line got them to the areas where they would be let off to run around quicker, and coordinated themselves accordingly. The rogue element to this was Gwaine, who had a predisposition for getting under the other dogs feet, tangling his lead and behaving as if he needed the canine equivalent of an asbo.

And now there was Merlin.

Arthur passed the leads around, trying to consider the best combination, until in the end he put the three large dogs into his left hand - it was now the strongest despite him originally being right handed - and risked Gwaine with Merlin.

It turned out to be a risk that wasn't a risk. Gwaine had been nothing but friendly to the lurcher. None of them had been aggressive towards him, but now, as Gwaine realised the other dog had been placed on the right with him, he tangled the lead slightly, putting himself on the outside of Merlin, in a flanking position, then he looked up at Arthur, ears pricked, looking somewhat offended by Arthur's assumption.

"Come on then," Arthur said. The three big dogs fell in on the left and Gwaine eased out right, letting Merlin, as was usual, hang as close to Arthur as possible, and Gwaine pulled none of his usual stunts, instead he took a incredibly protective stance on Merlin, even Lancelot, who was on the inside of the left flank kept a careful vigil of the vulnerable dog. Percival just pulled on the far left and Leon trotted along in his usual graceful manner.

Arthur walked up the wide path, letting the three bigger dogs take the lead. Gwaine jumped around a little, but made sure he didn't crash into Merlin, and Merlin stayed by Arthur, sniffing the ground occasionally but for the most part just concentrating on Arthur. Arthur watched them all as he walked, seeing all the little nuances, and traits he was used to, enjoying the fresh air and saying 'good afternoon' to a few of the other dog walkers he passed. He knew a few of them by sight now, but never really bothered with a conversation, he never wanted to, this was his time with the dogs, which he loved.

As they crested up the hill, which lead out to an open area beyond the forest all the dogs started to strain forward, their tails batting about. Arthur let them pull him up and Merlin kept pace with him, looking very nice in his red coat and blue collar. Arthur kept looking down to keep a close eye on his newest charge, but it seemed to have occurred to Merlin that if Arthur was taking all of them out then nothing bad was about to happen, not like Sunday, which had made Merlin increasingly nervous when he needed to go. Arthur was half convinced Uther had injured him when on Monday morning, Merlin had curled up as small as possible in one corner of the dog's bedroom, until Arthur had let the others out, and carried Merlin down, half working out how he could get to the vets, until he had put Merlin on the patio and he had peed violently. Arthur wondered how long the little dog had hung on. In response he had praised Merlin, given treats and tried to reassure him.

They all paused on the hill as Percival cocked his leg on a tree stump and Gwaine pointed out he was still in need of an asbo as he wriggled through, tangling Lancelot's back legs, to pee in the same place as Percival. Percival, shoved Leon and went under the lead, looping himself up to pee again.

"Oh for god's sake!" Arthur snapped, but they were close enough to the area they usually played, so he started to unclip leads. Gwaine ran off into the grass, yapping, until he realised no one had followed, so he charged back and ran into Leon, who quite naturally wasn't pleased. Gwaine ran off again with Leon chasing him. Lancelot bounced off, sniffing the ground, tail thrashing around, then he turned and looked at Arthur expectantly as Arthur walked Merlin, still on lead, over to the nearby bench. Sitting down, Arthur pulled the rucksack off his shoulders and started to rummage.

Lancelot panted and wagged his tail as Arthur produced two tennis balls. Gwaine yapped and bounced over. Arthur threw one and Gwaine ran off, Lancelot had paused to squat by the long grass by the bench. Arthur whipped out a plastic bag and gathered up the Labrador's mess with one hand, while throwing the tennis ball with the other. Percival charged past, a huge branch held in his jaws. Gwaine ran back with the ball and dropped it at Arthur's feet. Arthur hurled it again, before tucking the plastic bag into the front pocket of the rucksack.

Merlin, who was still on his lead, shuffled closer to Arthur and put his head under Arthur's hand. Arthur felt wary of letting Merlin off, as with all the dogs when they had been new.

Leon had been fine, and well-trained, so that hadn't been a problem. He had learnt the caution from Gwaine, who had charged off and Arthur had spent over an hour hunting for him, a bemused Leon and Lancelot dragged along, until a muddy, excitable, Gwaine had been located playing in a ditch. After that, Arthur had bought an extendable lead to keep hold of him, until Gwaine could be trusted.

Assessing Merlin, however, Arthur decided there was no risk. He thought the problem might be the opposite, that Merlin needed to be taught some independence. Gwaine reappeared, dropped the ball, and then ran off after Percival, trying to get the branch, which Gwaine would never manage to carry. Arthur picked up the ball and unclipped Merlin's lead, Merlin looked at him, as Arthur rolled the ball to him, only sending it six inches to hit Merlin's paw. Merlin dropped his muzzle and sniffed at it.

"Fetch it, come on, Merlin, fetch."

Merlin looked up, ears moving as he whined in confusion. Arthur patted his head.

"It doesn't matter."

At that point Lancelot bounded up with the other ball, putting it into Arthur's outstretched hand. Arthur threw it again. Percival ran past with his branch and Arthur picked up a nearby stick and threw it, sending Gwaine veering into the long grass in pursuit of it. Leon broke out of the grass, looked around and then went off with his nose to the ground. Merlin nosed the ball and Arthur picked it up again. Merlin's eyes followed him, then watched as Lancelot came back and Arthur threw the tennis ball again.

Arthur looked at Merlin again, in his blue collar and red coat. At that point he randomly wondered if he invested too early, for little reward.

He thought of the other dogs he had owned, Cenred for starters, then George - who had been re-united with his owner; Freya - who had died even after a few days of Arthur's care, as it had not been enough to save her; Sophia - who he had rushed to Gwen to find that she had been so badly hurt by whatever car had hit her that nothing could be done. They had just left her there. At least Arthur had tried. Although Gwen had gently tried to explain that people sometimes just didn't want to get lumbered with a vet bill for an animal they knew nothing about.

It was at that point he had set up the charity, so if people did find an animal they would not be liable for anything. Arthur was happy to pay, as long as they took their animals in to Gwen. So excited by the project Arthur had canvassed the area only to find that some people started to 'lose' their animals to get free treatment. Then Arthur had clamped down, changing the rules and that was how he had Percival, because the new clause allowed him to take charge of any animal which was, strictly speaking, in his care. Percival had, at the beginning, been aggressive and frightened as changeably as the weather.

Arthur eventually discovered that his previous owners used to blast him with a power hose to wash and punish him. So naturally the bulky, brave, dog had a fear of water, even if it was just Arthur gently drizzling some over him, or washing his muddy paws in a washing up bowl he had purchased for the purpose.

He remembered he had tried to leave the confrontation with Percival's owners to Gwen, until it had become aggressive and the owners had tried to take Percival by force. Arthur had stepped in, and he ended up with the dog and an assault charge.

Arthur didn't care, but his father had. He took the punishment and paid the fine, and let it lie in the annals of his history. And he still had Percival, and more animals after that. No one doubted his ability to look after the dogs.

He held the ball in his hand and offered it to Merlin. Merlin sniffed and looked up. Arthur shuffled down the bench and leaning down he rolled the ball to Merlin. Merlin watched it dribble towards him, slowly backing up, lifting his paws to try and evade it.

"Do what you like with it," Arthur said.

Merlin looked up at him again, clearly unsure of the situation, however, he had learnt to trust Arthur. The little dog nosed the ball again and tentatively picked it up in his jaws. Arthur held out his hand, putting it directly under Merlin's muzzle, after a moment Arthur took hold of the ball in Merlin's mouth and tugged gently. Merlin released it and looked up at Arthur, still clearly trying to figure out what Arthur wanted. Arthur rolled the ball to him again, and Merlin picked it up, this time getting up to offer Arthur the ball. Arthur took it, rubbing Merlin's ears, which caused his tail to start wagging.

"See you're getting it."

"Aw! Look at the ponce and his dressed up dog!" a voice announced.

Arthur turned to look at a group of five youths, who were strolling up the track. He sat up a bit, watching them carefully, they sniggered between them, looking at Merlin in his nice warm coat. Merlin's ears dropped, but he bared his teeth. The youths would more than likely pass them by without incident, but Arthur knew to be prepared. Merlin gave another whine, pressing against him. The boys laughed, and Arthur heard taunts about lap dogs, followed by obscenities and more laughter.

Then it faded as Percival appeared. He still pulled his branch along, but at the sight of the youths near Arthur he dropped it and a growl rumbled up from his chest.

Gwaine dived on the branch, then paused at Percival's rumble. As the smaller dog looked up he went into a round of yapping barks and growls, rushing forward towards the group. An action which drew Percival along.

The youths looked far less sure of themselves, backing away from Gwaine's onslaught.

"Come here," Arthur called following up with a light whistle.

Gwaine obeyed, still snapping and snarling, accompanied by Percival's deeper growls. Seconds later they were added to by Leon and Lancelot. The setter appeared close to Arthur, ears back and teeth bared. Lancelot bounded through the grass to reach them putting the tennis ball down by Arthur and hovering close by, his tail wagged but he gave several low angry barks at the same time.

The youths didn't seem to know what to do, other than to back away. At the back of the group a tall, curly-haired boy looked a little chagrined by the whole affair.

"I like dogs," he muttered at his friends while seeming to herd them away. Arthur did hear a few further mutterings of 'ponce' and one of 'fuckwit' but the confrontation appeared to be at an end. Gwaine didn't seem to think so as he trotted behind them yapping angrily, clearly wanting to send them on the way with a flea in their ear.

"Oi!" Arthur called, the youths paused and then realised Arthur was talking to his dog. "Here... and sit down!"

The youths watched as every dog obliged. Arthur felt the pressure as Merlin sat on his foot.

"Good boys," Arthur said putting a hand into the backpack. Percival half rose up.

"Er..." It was the only sound Arthur made and Percival sat down again. Gwaine stayed sat but shuffled on his backside towards Arthur. He pulled out a handful of dog treats, transferring them two at a time to his other hand to dole them out.

"I shouldn't praise you for being aggressive, but you all did as you were told."

Which they had, Arthur reasoned. They had turned back when called, and stayed put.

"And your concern was nice," he added, which it was. They had all run to his defence. Now they sat round him snuffling and rubbing against each other as they vied for treats. Arthur handed them out, petting heads as he went. Merlin pressed against his legs, resting his chin on Arthur's knee. Arthur petted his head and gave Merlin another treat.

"They were looking after you too."

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

He let them play for a little longer, getting Merlin to fetch the ball. Leon went around the bench peeing, as if he was trying to stake his claim on Arthur. Which was nice, and protective, if a little stinky.

Eventually, Arthur gathered them all up, let them run down the hill and he went the long way back, before putting them on the leads for the last little bit of the walk. He arranged them as he had on the way out. On the way back they did their usual round of toileting and Arthur gathered up any mess the made. He found it a little confusing, thinking that they would have wanted to do all that before running round. But their habit was to go on the way home, so Arthur just cleaned up what came out.

As he reached the car they all clustered around him, even Merlin as he arranged them in the car and packed away. He was going to have to take them via the garden gate, and somehow persuade Percival that having his paws washed was not the equivalent of being hung, drawn and quartered.

Arthur slid into the driver's seat and slumped back for a moment, taking deep breaths and relaxing. It had been a very nice afternoon out, he would go home, wash and then feed his brood, microwave a dinner and then snuggle on the sofa with them watching something that was complete and utter trash. He turned as he heard a contented rumbling to see Gwaine licking Merlin's ear before settling along side him. Merlin curled up with him, but his eyes still rested on Arthur. Arthur reached back and petted both their head.

"Good boys."

Leon gave a bark, Arthur smiled indulgently.

"That goes for you to."


	5. Percival's Paranoia

The Alsatian went into a round of pitiful barks, which had nothing to do with the fact that he had just run headlong into the bedroom door, but due to the fact it was clear a bath or grooming session was imminent. Arthur just managed to get the dog's bedroom door shut in time to stop Percival fleeing. Percival ran round the room, trying to find an alternative escape route in panic, not bothering what he ran into as he did so. This was the reason that Arthur only ever gave Percival a bath when he absolutely had to.

Thankfully, this time, he didn't. He just wanted to brush the matted bits from his fur, which seemed to be just as traumatic as a bath, and Arthur couldn't avoid the issue. He grabbed hold of Percival, snagging his collar and he wrapped one arm around the dog's neck to try and keep him still as he grabbed the brush. The Alsatian went into a round of pitiful barks as he felt the brush connect with his fur and Arthur determinedly started to brush through the tangles in his fur. He was going to have to cut off some of the more matted sections of the hair.

Arthur sighed as Percival whimpered. This was one of the most stressful jobs he had with any of the dogs. The others were currently scattered around the room. Lancelot and Leon were both pacing nervously, Gwaine stationed himself by the bath, waiting for his turn to be groomed. Merlin curled up in distress, the sleeve of Arthur's red jogging top in his mouth.

Arthur had planned to throw the ragged item of clothing out. He left it at the back door, with a pile of other things that really needed to go, and ten minutes later he had found it gone. Eventually, he located it in Merlin's basket and the dog had whined so pitifully when Arthur had attempted to remove it that he had left it and Merlin continued to carry it around like a sweaty security blanket. The little dog now watched the action as Percival tried to fling himself out of reach as Arthur sprayed a detangling treatment on him, before tackling him with the brush again. Percival snapped his teeth, growling aggressively. Arthur paused.

"Do you want your toy?" he asked Percival, who howled, ignoring the large chew toy. Arthur put it down and picked the brush up again. He had to be relentless in this procedure. He had been bitten, scratched and knocked about at one time or another, all because he needed to put a brush through Percival's fur. He had once tried getting the dog sitters to help, but even Elyan, who Arthur had presumed to be the more practical of the three of them, had shirked at touching the howling, distressed dog, so Arthur tackled it himself. A second person would have been helpful, but Arthur didn't think anyone was equip to cope. Gwen might have been better, as a vet she had to be far more practical, and they had tried shaving him once, but Percival had to be heavily sedated for that and that didn't seem fair. Plus he hated wearing a coat, ripping at the material in distress. Grooming was in the short term distressing but the best method in the long term.

Plus Gwen was a busy person, Arthur didn't think expecting her to take an hour or so to deal with his dog was right. She had other animals to help. So, Arthur fought Percival alone. He could end up badly injured. His arm had been badly bitten once, but Arthur knew Percival had regretted that, he had let go and slumped down the moment he realised what his jaws had been clamped around.

Gaius had been hugely concerned when he had seen the wound and it had taken all of Arthur's persuasive powers to silence him. The last thing he needed was Uther hearing about it. But Arthur's arm had healed and he now always wore a thick sweatshirt when he groomed, just a tee-shirt was not a good idea.

Percival gave a dramatic slump, and Arthur took advantage, he used the headlock he had on the dog to drag him over, holding him down on his side. It probably looked brutal, but Arthur didn't want Percival looking a mess. He ran the brush down Percival's flank, tugging at the matted clumps, freeing them as efficiently as he could. Merlin gave a whine as Percival lay sprawled on his side. Arthur lay over him, pressing the dog to the floor while he tugged on the tangles on Percival's back leg and tail. Merlin inched closer, whining through the red material. Percival tensed and growled, lurching to try and get up and get at Merlin, who skittered back in shock, landing heavily on his rump.

"Oi!" Arthur admonished, keeping a tight hold of Percival's collar to hold him down. "Don't be mean to Merlin. I'm doing my best," he added to the distressed looking lurcher.

Merlin regarded him for a long moment before shuffling closer to Arthur, resting against his right leg. Arthur paused, looking round as he felt the slight pressure. He would have liked to have paused to pet Merlin's head, but he knew Percival would take any advantage he could get in this battle, and if Arthur lost him now the resulting struggle to regain the upper hand could leave Arthur rather battered.

"It's all right," he said calmly to Merlin as he went back to combing through the tangled fur on the back of Percival's hind leg and his tail. He would have to turn the dog over to get to do the other side properly, which wouldn't be easy, but pinning him to the wall was another effective method.

"My hand to hand combat skills were not made for this," he informed a howling Percival.

Arthur glanced at the other dogs. Leon and Lancelot had stopped pacing about, but they were still watching vary warily, Leon especially, who knew from long experience, he was likely to be next. Although Leon's silky hair was usually easier to deal with that Percival's coarse fur.

"Right," Arthur said as he finished down Percival's right side. He now had to get to the left, on which Percival lay. Arthur slowly rose up, taking his restraining weight off the dog. Percival knew what that meant, he jumped up and jerked forward. Arthur hissed as his shoulder joint strained under the pressure of keeping hold of his collar. If he let him go Percival would run around the room, again not caring what he barrelled into, Arthur dug his heels into the carpet and pushed Percival sideways, getting him against the nearest wall. Merlin whined again, having been dislodged from his position near Arthur.

He slunk up a corner, tail and haunches down, whining again, and clearly drooling judging by the wet patch forming on the red hoodie. Despite the fact he had been clinging to the material, he hadn't snagged it, or ripped any holes in. Merlin was still treating it very carefully. Arthur wondered if he had something a little nicer, which was not faded and covered in sweat stains, not that it actually mattered to Merlin. He just wanted to hang onto something that smelt of Arthur.

Gwaine trotted out of the bathroom, clearly realising he was not getting his turn in a hurry, he bounded up to Percival, who snapped at him, so Gwaine bounded away again and instead went to fuss over Merlin. He snuffled up and down, tail wagging, although it stilled as Gwaine sniffed at the material and Merlin growled through it. Instead Gwaine decided to start licking Merlin's ear. Merlin cocked his head and gave an uncertain rumble. Arthur didn't get a chance to comment, he pinned Percival to a wall and went at him with the brush, rousing another howl from the large dog.

"I know," Arthur sympathized. Then he turned as a startled yelp tore through the air. Gwaine jumped back from Merlin shaking his head slightly. Merlin whined, reaching to gather the material he had dropped back into his mouth, scrabbling at it with his paws. As Gwaine shook his head again Arthur saw the droplets of blood where Merlin had lashed out. Gwaine bobbed about, more curious than distressed about the drops of blood. Arthur could only assume that Gwaine had tried to play with the hoodie. Tug-of-War being one of Gwaine's favourite things and the hoodie perfect for it. Merlin, it seemed, hadn't taken that with good humour. Percival howled again.

As Arthur as almost done with him he finished off Percival's flank as quickly as possible and as he released him the Alsatian slumped down. Arthur dumped the large chew toy, shaped like a joint of meat, in front of him. Percival paid it no heed, and he lay still as Arthur turned to Gwaine. The little dog bounded away, then ran back again.

Pulling him onto his lap Arthur examined the ear. The wound didn't look too bad but Arthur carried him into the bathroom and washed it anyway. Merlin trailed after them still looking apprehensive. As he settled Gwaine in his lap Arthur reached out to Merlin.

"It's all right."

Merlin hesitated, unsure of what was about to happen. In the end he went under the hand and Arthur petted him reassuringly. Gwaine wriggled in his lap and Arthur rubbed his belly.

"You're fine."

Gwaine barked in agreement and jumped off Arthur's lap as he started to get up. Arthur gave Merlin another reassuring stroke before going back into the bedroom. Gwaine proved he was perfectly fine and well by running over to try and steal Percival's chew toy. It did occasionally squeak but Gwaine appeared to be the only one who could make it do so. After one wheezy squeak Percival roused. Gwaine dropped the toy and jumped away as Percival snatched it holding it in his jaws and grumbling round it, probably about the mind-numbing torture Arthur had put him through.

Arthur put Percival's brushes to one side and Leon's ears went back as Arthur advanced on him. Leon was an easier job, but since he had to watch Percival's trauma the setter generally seemed a little wound up. Arthur could have done them the other way round but when Arthur had tried that, once, Percival caused far too much chaos running round in a panic, knowing he would be next. So Percival went first, and Leon suffered in second place. Gwaine picked up Percival's discarded brush and trotted over to Arthur, tail wagging and ears pricked up in expectation.

"Don't worry I haven't forgotten you," Arthur assured him. Gwaine sat down, tail swishing as he waited. Leon gave a grumble.

"Give over," Arthur ordered, reaching over to Leon's far side. Leon grumbled again but as he was far too well trained to do anything but stay still and suffer it he didn't move. His previous owners used to take in to shows, so Leon was perfectly accustomed to a grooming, although Arthur got the feeling he didn't really like any aspect of that. A quick groom from him was virtually nothing, and it didn't take him long.

"There you go," Arthur said five minutes later, happy with the result, at which point he could open the door. Percival was up and out in a flash, smacking against the door frame in his haste, but it didn't slow him down. Leon and Lancelot dashed out with him. Gwaine sat still, looking at Arthur in expectation.

"Come on then," Arthur said down with Gwaine's brush at the ready. Without hesitation Gwaine clambered onto his lap and gave a rumble of contentment as Arthur started to brush him. Arthur smirked as Gwaine sprawled limply in his lap, eyes shut, giving happy little grunts as Arthur tackled his fur. Very slowly Merlin inched closer, the material still in his mouth, and he very cautiously tucked himself against Arthur's leg. Gwaine's eyes opened slightly as he sensed the movement but he remained flopped in Arthur's lap. He brushed Gwaine with one hand and petted Merlin with the other. Merlin snuggled closer.

"You're good boys. Well, Merlin you are. Gwaine, you have your moments."

Gwaine grunted and his tail batted against Arthur's leg at the sound of his name, but he didn't move, still engrossed in the grooming. Arthur continued, although he had pulled most of the snags and knots from his fur. It didn't really need anything more, but Gwaine liked it, so Arthur was happy to indulge him. Despite some of his quirks Gwaine was so nice natured Arthur was baffled to work out why his owners had left him, merely leaving him in the house when they moved.

Two days later the new owners had come in to find Gwaine, out of distress or boredom, ripping up the hallway carpet. At least they had had the good sense to take him to the local vets, thankfully Gwen, who hadn't even laid eyes on Gwaine, when his re-homing occurred. Elena had taken one look at the dog, barely more than a puppy, popped him in one of the surgery's kennels and called Arthur.

Within ten minutes he had arrived to look at Gwaine and said yes to taking him. Gwen had checked him, wormed, fleaed and vaccinated him and handed him over. In those early weeks Gwaine had been hard work, so amenable on the one hand, but determined to get himself into trouble, almost as if he wanted to ensure that he could get attention.

Arthur had never actually located the previous owners, he had got the local police to try and track them down, simply so he could give them a piece of his mind. He was certainly not giving Gwaine back, but he couldn't understand the mentality of just leaving a living thing that needed care to fend for itself.

Arthur gave up brushing and simply petted Gwaine, and Merlin, letting them both cuddle against him. He looked over Gwaine's ear again. The bleeding had stopped and the dog grumbled as Arthur fiddled with his ear rather than stroking him. Gwaine wriggled to get Arthur to carry on stroking, which Arthur did, looking up as Leon slowly came back into the room. He sniffed around the room, nosed a couple of toys and then came over to Arthur.

"Hello," Arthur said.

Leon sat down and looked at the two dogs curled up close to Arthur, he dropped his head and sniffed, watching the scene.

"Come on then," Arthur invited. Leon looked apprehensive for the moment but then slowly, carefully, lay himself down against Arthur's other leg on the opposite side to Merlin. Arthur then had to pet each dog in turn. In the end it seemed Gwaine had gone to sleep ensconced on Arthur's lap, so he left fussing him for a moment and instead concentrated on Merlin and Leon.

The scene felt quiet and nice, after the trauma of getting Percival groomed up. And Arthur wasn't surprised when Lancelot came trotting back into the room. Not being the least bit insecure, and having no need for Arthur to reassure him Lancelot settled himself next to Merlin. The little lurcher grumbled but as the pressure of Lancelot's bulk pushed him closer to an accommodating Arthur he soon settled. Gwaine huffed and rolled onto his back so Arthur put a hand on his belly, Leon raised his head.

"I've only got two hands guys," he informed the dogs as he moved his hands from Leon to Gwaine. Merlin he could continue to pet because Lancelot didn't need excessive attention. He would let Arthur pet him, and liked attention, but he didn't ever seem to need it like the others. What Lancelot did seem to like was being around other dogs. When he had first entered the household he seemed more focused on gaining Leon's approval than any attention that Arthur could give him. When it came to humans the only one that Lancelot seemed to really need attention from was Gwen. Quite possibly his alpha female.

When Arthur had put that theory to her she had smiled indulgently.

"I think you're over thinking it, you don't give him treats."

Maybe Arthur did over think it. He still felt a little hurt over Percival's reactions to his grooming, even time and experience had not lessened the trauma for either of them. Arthur could not make it better, he could only minimise the time he did the horrific deed.

Percival came to the door, looking in at the others who had sat around Arthur. The Alsatian sat down and looked at them, almost as if he could not believe they had sided with Arthur. Then reaction occurred, but not from a source that Arthur expected. He felt Merlin lift his head and look, then the little dog slowly uncurled himself. Lancelot mumbled as Merlin slowly turned, arching his back and carefully shifting his paws so he could manoeuvre in the small space to turn around and hop over Lancelot's back legs.

Arthur watched as Merlin trotted up to Percival, who gave a low warning rumble around the chew toy he was still holding. The usually apprehensive Merlin didn't seem fazed by the aggression, he gave a little rumble of his own, going straight to Percival, who backed up slightly. Merlin gave a curious whine, pausing before slowly advancing again. Percival went still, giving a low growl, which cut off as Merlin licked his nose before snuffling his nose into Percival's neck.

Merlin spent a few seconds licking Percival's shoulder, giving reassuring grunts and grumbles. Percival's only response was to stop growling, and he merely looked down at the little dog. When Merlin stopped Percival gave a whine, lowering his head. Arthur watched the conversation of grunts and rumbles with interest. Whatever it ended with meant that Merlin turned and trotted back, leaping over Lancelot back into the space he had vacated. Merlin leant against Arthur and gave a huff that seemed to say, 'at least I tried'.

Percival had shuffled further into the room. Arthur wrapped an arm around Merlin, letting him sprawl against him, at the same time he shifted a boneless Gwaine about in his lap to prevent him from getting caught by Merlin's paws as he settled again. Gwaine rumbled and settled himself in the dip between Arthur's thighs, giving a snore. Merlin rested his head on Arthur's thigh and as he petted the dog's head Merlin licked his hand.

"You're a very nice dog," Arthur told Merlin. Merlin wriggled to get his body closer to Arthur's leg, his foreleg draped over his knee. They were all gathered around him and even Percival slowly inched closer. Experience told him that nothing traumatic would come, and Arthur would likely feed them soon, and offer treats in way of apology, buy Percival didn't trust easily, not like Merlin, who snuggled himself against Arthur and Gwaine, who lay in Arthur's lap without apprehension.

"Dinner?" Arthur offered.

Even Merlin knew now what that word meant. Gwaine flipped over, looking up at Arthur eagerly. All the dogs did. Dinner and more snuggling in front of the television were the forthcoming activities, even Percival laid aside his chew toy and his tail gave a tentative shake.

"Come on, then!" Arthur said.

The dogs ran for the kitchen, Gwaine scrabbling off his lap to get into the lead. Arthur heard them all running down the stairs, all except Merlin, who hung next to him, waiting for him to get up. Merlin gathered up the hoodie and wagged his tail, looking up at Arthur with adoring eyes. Arthur petted him again, and Merlin walked with Arthur as he headed downstairs. Merlin held the hoodie in his mouth and Arthur had to smile.

"You can keep that scratty old thing if you like it so much."


	6. Cenred's Stand

**This one is set back in time, a few years before Merlin appeared in the household, and explains why anything Cenred came in contact with ended up the way it did. **

The noise roused Arthur in an instant as the four dogs in the far room started barking at once. He rolled out of bed, kicking the covers away, dashing down the hallway. Arthur flicked on the light and looked at them, registering that they all looked fine, and they were all fussing around the window. Gwaine yapped frantically, Lancelot had got his front paws on the window sill and barked at something outside. Percival and Leon added to the rumbles, pacing around Arthur as he went to the window and looked out.

The back garden was shrouded in darkness as his security light was off. It had originally been a sensor light, but having a huge prowling Rottweiler secured in the back meant it flashed on every time Cenred moved, so the bright light never seemed to be off.

Arthur threw open the window to try and see a little better. The quarter moon and some residual light gave him a limited amount of visibility. He caught sight of a shadow moving up the oak tree in his garden and the sound of Cenred, somewhere in the darkness, snarling and barking. That sound combined with the unmistakeable crunch of the dog throwing himself against the mesh of his cage as he tried to get at whoever had entered his territory. The shadow in the tree was far to big to be a cat or fox.

"Shit!" Arthur announced loudly into the darkness, causing the rustling shadow in his tree to pause.

Arthur heard the sound of a siren in the distance and shouting somewhere in the street. Something appeared to be going on in the neighbourhood. He yanked the window shut and ran downstairs with the four dogs on his heels. Arthur skidded into the kitchen and stopped by the door, whirling round to the four dogs on his heels.

"Stay!"

They all paused and Arthur unlocked the back door.

"Stay!"

He didn't need the dogs with him as he ran into the yard, and flipped on the light. Skidding to a halt at the end of the decking he gaped in shock. Cenred now prowled at the bottom of the tree, a corner of the cage had been mangled, the mesh ripped open. The man in the tree yelped as Cenred lunged at the trunk, gnawing at the bark.

"Stay still," Arthur ordered him.

Eventually Cenred stopped trying to kill the tree and he went back to snarling and pacing, spittle flew from his mouth as he barked and snarled.

"Shit! Stop there!" Arthur yelled as Cenred whirled round to bark at the gate, his entire body tensing. Arthur spotted several neighbours behind a trio of police officers. He raised his hand to indicate them to stay put.

"Is that your animal?" one of the officers asked.

'No, I just have an insane random dog in my yard', Arthur thought to himself, out loud he said.

"Yes, I need to get his muzzle, hang on!"

There was no way Arthur could put Cenred back into the cage for now. If he secured him in the house the muzzle would be necessary and he needed the other dogs out of the kitchen. They were no doubt gathered by the closed door, wondering where he had gone, and what was going on outside. Cenred had already alerted them to a problem.

"I need to get his kit, wait and stay there!" he yelled up at the man in the tree and the crowd now clustered by the gate. Cenred would happily and violently take them on if they ended up in the garden. And Arthur couldn't just control him by command, he had tried to bond with the dog, but he had received very little so far in the way of a response.

Arthur dashed into the house and the other dogs clustered around him. Except Gwaine, and Arthur used his foot to hook a determined Gwaine away from the back door to stop him from going out there and taking Cenred on.

He scrabbled for the muzzle and Cenred's very badly damaged toy, teeth marks and puncture holes, marred the plastic surface. Arthur locked the rest of the dogs in the hallway and ran out, pausing to grab his trainers, only realising he was barefoot as he skidded on the kitchen floor. He ran out, hopping to get his trainers on his feet while also getting into the yard to prevent any disasters.

Cenred snapped and snarled violently, the sounds increasingly frantic. The man had reached the lower branches and Cenred jumped to try and get him.

"I told you to stay there!" Arthur yelled.

"Get him away from me!"

"Sir, you need to get your dog under control!" one of the policemen ordered.

"I'm going to!" Arthur snapped as he slowly advanced on the snarling Cenred. His growling deepened as Arthur advanced warily. Even now, after a year of owning him, he still treated Cenred with wary respect.

"Sir if you cannot get that dog under control then we shall deal with it."

"I didn't think you left him loose, dear," Arthur heard his neighbour announce.

"I don't Mrs Lord, he's broken the cage," he told her as he shuffled forward, careful of his left shoe, which wasn't on properly. He didn't want to pause to sort himself out, Arthur didn't think he had time, getting hold of Cenred before the police gave him any further reason to be paranoid seemed quite essential. Cenred's eyes were fixed on the trespasser in the tree as Arthur moved to his side. He had the muzzle and toy in his right hand and reached out with the left for the thick collar on Cenred's neck. The growling continued and Cenred's muscles were rigid with tension; his ears moved on his head registering Arthur's advance but he didn't move his malevolent gaze from the intruder.

Arthur put his hand on Cenred's neck, ready to shove the toy in his mouth if he turned to attack him. Slowly he took hold of the collar. Cenred's gaze remained locked on the intruder in the tree, and he made no aggressive moves towards Arthur. Dropping the chew toy Arthur put the muzzle on, letting go the collar to secure it, then he had to grab a muzzled Cenred as the police ran into the yard, and Cenred lunged at them. Arthur hung onto the Rottweiler's collar as he barked at the uniformed men.

"Cenred!"

As he dragged the dog a few paces, Cenred slowly started to walk with him, but kept his gaze and aggression directed at the other people in the yard, who had, Cenred decided, no right to be there. One officer went to arrest the man in the tree, the other followed Arthur as he stumbled up onto the decking, loosing his loose shoe. Cenred turned, allowing Arthur to pull him backwards, but he could still snarl at the officer at the same time.

"How long have you owned this animal?"

"Just over a year. It would help if you just waited a moment!"

"Come and have some tea," Arthur's neighbour ordered the policeman.

"What's going on?" Arthur asked her as she got the officer off the decking and Cenred's snarling went down a notch or two.

"He broke into the Rhodes' house, and scared the life out of little Kara."

"That's karma then," Arthur snarled. Cenred grunted as he was turned at the kitchen door. It was a place he never entered.

"What do you mean?" the policeman asked.

"He scares a little girl and he gets scared himself."

"And you let this dog run loose?"

"He already told you, he's kept in the cage; oh my!" Arthur's elderly neighbour saw the state of Cenred's cage.

"Yeah," Arthur said. "Please, just let him get him in."

Cenred allowed himself to be pulled into the kitchen. Through the gate that blocked off the hallway Gwaine yapped and yapped, the three larger dogs paced behind him rumbling uncertainly at Cenred's presence in the house. Cenred gave them a challenging growl, then as Arthur closed the gate on the back door he let Cenred go. He turned to the other dogs, growling at them, then as the policeman stepped onto the decking again Cenred ran at the gate, hitting it head on, the whole thing rattled and Arthur kicked off his other shoe and padded over to put a hand on Cenred's head.

The dog turned, with another snarl, smacking the side of the muzzle against Arthur's thigh. In reflex, Arthur grabbed the collar, pulling Cenred away from him. Arthur looked at the trail of spit on his pyjama bottoms and winced.

"How long did you say you have owned this dog?"

Arthur sighed. "As I said, about a year and I know he's not civilised but he was kept in that cage, which he got out of when he realised someone he didn't know was in his territory."

He indicated to the dog run as he spoke, still feeling a awed by the damage the huge dog had wreaked. Cenred stood next to him growling, drool dripping out of the muzzle. Arthur turned and opened the freezer, rummaging in one of the drawers he pulled out a large bone. He put it on the side and left it to defrost. By the look of it, by the time everyone was done Cenred could have the thing.

"Do you let him run in the garden?"

"Of course he doesn't dear," Mrs Lord announced as she wandered onto the decking. Several of the neighbours had drifted in, on hearing all the noise and seeing the cluster of police vehicles starting to gather.

"He's done quite a bit of damage, but he's normally in that cage. Arthur turned the sensor light off to stop him setting it off," she added.

Arthur nodded. "As Mrs Lord is saying, that's how I keep him. Someone intruding into the yard just set him off, and he broke out. So at least you got him."

"He could have ended up severely mauled by that beast."

Arthur refrained from saying that as a burglar he as asking for it and instead said. "He wasn't and I take precautions with Cenred. How he is, is not his fault. Gwaine! Enough!"

He turned and shouted at the smaller dog who was letting off rounds of disapproving barks and growls, both at Cenred and the stranger on the decking. His disapproval had increased as Cenred started to sniff around the unfamiliar territory. Gwaine paused as Arthur shouted, staring at him with surprise, ears pricked up, but his tail started to wag.

Arthur reached into the treat tin, which caused all four dogs in the hallway to pause. Arthur pulled out four chews and went to hand them out, hopefully gagging Gwaine for at least a few minutes. Then Arthur turned to look at Cenred, but treats had never been a thing that interested him. Instead he seemed to be examining every inch of the kitchen. Arthur remembered Cenred had done the same thing when he had put him in the run. Following that he had peed extensively to mark the territory. Arthur sighed as Cenred cocked his leg. Gwaine paused chewing to bark.

"Oh dear," said Mrs Lord.

"I'll clean up tomorrow," Arthur said. "Let me get some newspaper down."

Cenred sniffed where he had peed and grunted in satisfaction before returning to snuffle at the floor where the dogs were fed. Arthur put down some sheets of paper, Cenred huffed at him, and rubbed the muzzle against the table leg.

"Futile I know, Gwaine taught me that."

Gwaine yapped at the sound of his name, then he went back to his chew.

"You started it," Arthur told Gwaine before deciding to leave Cenred to it. He went through the gate onto the decking, ensuring it was secured. Cenred looked up and ran to the door, his body alert and tense and eyes fixed on Arthur. He slammed his bulk against the gate, and it shuddered, as the policeman advanced on Arthur. The burglar, as he was led away in handcuffs, shouted at Arthur.

"Your dog is fucking nuts!"

"Yes," Arthur agreed, because Cenred basically was. He had been driven mad by his previous owner because that was the way they wanted him.

"How did you acquire this animal?" the policeman asked.

"I fund an animal charity. I take in unwanted dogs and help re-home others. No one else could take him."

"Perhaps he should have been destroyed."

"With respect," Arthur snarled. "You cannot blame Cenred for how he is. I know what I am doing, giving him the best care I can in the circumstances. An idiot running into my yard I can't account for. And why the hell am I justifying myself to you. That man," Arthur waved a hand at the burglar, who had managed to pause to listen to him. "Broke into someone else's house, if they have a dog, then those animal's will protect their territory, and their pack, that is their instinct and you cannot blame them for that. And quite frankly, if you going to start putting animals down for being nuts, I'd have been done six years ago!"

"Don't get upset dear," Mrs Lord said. "Leave Arthur alone, thanks to his dog you caught him."

Cenred emphasized that by slamming his himself against the gate, it rattled so violently that Arthur jumped towards it to ensure it stayed in place. Cenred tried to gnaw the metal bars, and Arthur was glad he had left the muzzle on; and now, as he watched the various people walking around the yard, he felt some agreement with Cenred. He wanted them all out of there.

It took ninety minutes in all to clear the yard, of people asking questions, his neighbours having a look at the damaged cage, which Arthur tried not to mind, but he never really spoke to any of these people, other than to say good morning. His house was not that interesting, other than being packed with emotionally damaged dogs. By the time he got rid of them he knew that he would probably have a few calls paid to him tomorrow. Perhaps he could get the dogs out on a long walk.

As he opened the door he halted at the snarl, then Cenred gave a huff. The kitchen seemed to be just about surviving his occupation, although the newspapers had been scattered about, and Cenred had peed by the back door, which Arthur mopped up before he went any further.

Then he went to take the other four dogs upstairs and make sure they stayed up there. He had gates everywhere for that purpose, one of which covered the top of the stairs. So he got them into their room, and then locked them upstairs. Gwaine ran after him, sitting at the top of the steps his nose pressed to the gate, watching Arthur intently. Percival came to join him, sitting down and watching curiously. All of their routines had been disturbed by the intruder, if that hadn't happened, they would have slept until morning, coming in their own time to disturb Arthur, clambering on his bed, licking at his hands and feet if they were sticking out of the bed, and barking at him to get him to rouse.

Instead they had been rudely disturbed, and as a consequence would not settle easily.

With that in mind Arthur went into his study and checked out his diary. All he had to do tomorrow morning was work from home. He was expected to email his work on, but to someone who would understand the circumstances. Arthur turned on the computer, sat down and sent off an email informing Bayard that because of an incident in the neighbourhood, involving a burglary he had been woken up and things had only just calmed down. Arthur promised to do the work but would have to email it later. 4pm at the latest Arthur promised, as he was now tired and the work may have to be delayed.

"That'll do," Arthur said. Generally Arthur's work, and his reports, were excellent, and he wasn't lying about the fact he was up at 4am, and Bayard knew him well enough to know he hadn't been out partying. He got up and went into the hall. Gwaine whined and scrabbled against the gate.

"You're a pain down here with Cenred in the kitchen," Arthur informed him. "Bed, Gwaine! Lancelot! Bed!"

Arthur's word was sometimes law. This time appeared to be one of them. Percival had already gone, Lancelot huffed and headed off into the room where the dogs slept. Gwaine lingered longer, engaged in a staring contest with Arthur before his ears dropped and he wandered off, although he barked, as if to have the last word. Arthur huffed and went to check on his kitchen.

His kitchen was fine. Cenred had sat down, eyes fixed on the back door in an attentive vigil, he didn't even look round when Arthur came in.

"Cenred, you don't need to do that."

Cenred did, however, his home had been violated, and he took that seriously, and Arthur appeared to be accepted in that; when he had walked up to muzzle his psychotic dog the dog had just let him. Now he walked up and took the muzzle off. Cenred snarled but his eyes remained fixed on the door.

"Settle down," Arthur said. He would have normally petted the dog's head at this point but Cenred didn't seem to like that, so Arthur refrained and instead gave Cenred the bone, or at least he put it in front of him. Cenred continued to eye the door suspiciously, ready for anything.

"Eat your bone," Arthur told him. He looked around the kitchen. He was awake now, and could go up and settle the other dogs but by the sound of it they had retreated to the bedroom and he was loath to set them off again. Arthur could have gone to start the work he needed to do, since his mind needed to focus on something, but some level of loyalty kept him in the kitchen.

"Hang on," he said and he went into the study to gather up the laptop and flash drive, which he brought into the kitchen. Cenred remained alert, staring at the door while Arthur sat down at the kitchen table. Then he looked up at Cenred again, who had laid on his belly, gaze still fixed on the door. With a sigh Arthur got up. He paused in the doorway as he heard paper rustling. Cenred had turned, watching him carefully, then his gaze drifted back to the door.

"Stay," Arthur ordered him. He went upstairs and into the dogs room. They were still awake, but had started to settle. Gwaine got up and snuffled round him as he went into the room and picked up one of the large beds tucked in a corner. The moment he tucked it under his arm Percival got up and sniffed at the corner, before looking up at him.

"You're not using it!" Arthur told him. "And trying to get something out of Cenred's kennel now is just not worth the effort."

He fussed the dogs for a minute or so, settling them down again, then the carried the bed downstairs. Cenred waited for him in the doorway of the kitchen. As Arthur returned he went back to the vigil on the backdoor.

"Here," Arthur said putting the bed down and spreading it out, pushing it against Cenred's flank in the hint that he should get on it. Cenred huffed and glowered at the door, ears pricked up, body alert for movement.

"Suit yourself, you can't say I didn't offer."

Arthur went back to his laptop. When he got tired, he would stop, but until then he was awake and on those occasions, he usually spent time with the dogs, however, he felt a level of loyalty to stay with Cenred, who was out of his usual territory, but had, when in it, treated Arthur as if he was part of the scenery; an acceptable, dominant part of it. He had muzzled and controlled him with a minimum of fuss, which had surprised Arthur.

He paused to watch as Cenred's paw scraped at the blanket, pulling it closer and he shuffled sideways to put himself on the bed. Arthur watched him slowly settle again, his eyes still steadily fixed on the door, presumably just in case someone else tried to break in, but at least he had made himself comfortable, his nose dipping occasionally to sniff the material. He didn't seem too pleased with what he found there, but eventually he rolled himself fully onto it and settled down again, eyes still fixed on the backdoor. Arthur carried on working, watching as Cenred's head slowly lowered onto his paws.

Arthur eventually went to bed, but only when he was entirely sure that Cenred slept soundly.


	7. Christmas

Arthur usually preferred Christmas Day alone with the dogs. Around that significant day he did 'drinks' at his house for various people but in carefully controlled numbers. Gwen and the dog walkers came as a mob, which the dogs loved as Christmas toys and treats came as standard. And he managed to cope with his father, and Morgana, as a pair. Gaius usually dropped by, and the neighbours sometimes came in.

The dogs probably had no comprehension of the sudden movement in the house, but it came with treats and attention, so they were happy. Arthur always opened the door and politely listened to the carol singers, who knew Arthur's house was a place to go. He took a decent amount of time to listen, and put good money into the charity pots, and it amused the dogs. Gwaine, naturally, joined in, howling along with the singers, and much to one group's amusement got cut off abruptly when Lancelot got bored and batted him on the head. Arthur had to cut that visit short as he shut the door on the singers and went to separate the now rowing dogs.

Merlin took it with his usual bemusement, but as long as he could hang about near Arthur he was fine. As a general rule, moments of severe stress could be noted by the carrying of the red hoodie. Merlin now kept it in the basket, or upstairs at night. But he had coped with the invasions, and strange behaviour, well.

Christmas had it's order in Arthur's life, which meant as he answered the door and saw Morgana unscheduled, he felt a little stunned.

"Hi," Arthur said tentatively. Morgana looked angry, which meant she was nervous, and she held a tin in front of her as if it could act as a shield.

"I came without dad," she announced; although that much was obvious.

"Right, come in," Arthur said. Morgana tentatively came over the threshold, looking around as she realised there were no dogs, other than Merlin, who had followed Arthur and sat looking up from him to Morgana. She looked down at him tentatively and then looked around as she heard laugher from Arthur's lounge.

"Oh, I didn't realise you had people!" Morgana hesitated slightly, stunned into immobility. She had never been in Arthur's house with other people.

"It's only the dog lot," Arthur said to her sounding slightly amused at her discomfort. Morgana generally seemed so poised in social situations, it was Arthur that usually had trouble.

"Don't worry, they don't bite."

Morgana glowered at him, but allowed the hand Arthur had on her back to guide her towards the lounge.

"Funny!"

"What? Oh, I see! Not on purpose," Arthur said as he realised the pun. "Mind out Gwaine!" he added as the dog nearly got himself spiked on Morgana's heels. Arthur positioned Morgana carefully, who stared down at the milling dogs nervously, then up at the people in the room as Arthur said.

"Guys this is my sister Morgana; and this is Elyan, Elena and Mithian my dog walkers and I think you might have met Gwen, the vet."

Gwen smiled. "Yes, we have met. Hi."

She didn't move, Morgana noted, as Gwen had Lancelot sat at her feet, resting his chin on her leg, eyes looking up at her in adoration. And, Morgana noted, was drooling onto her jeans, not that Gwen cared. Morgana felt pain for the denim that was suffering, but she knew Gwen's jeans were not an expensive kind. Then Morgana felt mean for judging her on that scale. All that ran through her head in seconds, and she felt hot, and nervous, and things that she never often felt. Dealing with Arthur on his own was difficult but fine, now she had people that liked Arthur and that made it harder work which made Morgana feel even worse for thinking such a thing. Her brother was nice, and likeable.

"For Gods sake, Gwaine!" Arthur said, using his foot to push the curious Westie out of the way of Morgana's heels.

Looking down Morgana watched the white fluffy body dart out of the way of Arthur's guiding foot, then Gwaine turned to look up at her curiously, tail wagging, head tilted as he assessed her potential for fussing over him.

"I brought biscuits," Morgana said. "I baked them myself."

"Nice," Elyan said.

"For the dogs," Morgana added.

"You baked dog biscuits!" Elena shrieked in delight. "Brilliant! How do you do that?"

"Look on the internet and you can find anything."

"That is so lovely, and sweet," Elena said. "I wouldn't make that much effort and I love dogs and pets and it's my job!"

"Have you made us any?" Elyan asked hopefully.

"Well, to be honest I think when it comes to Arthur he might just... oh, seriously!"

She raised her tone, and voice, as Arthur opened the tin, picked out a biscuit and bit off the end, chewing thoughtfully.

"Would," Morgana carried on. "snack on dog biscuits anyway!"

Arthur looked surprised, chewed the small amount of biscuit and then swallowed it.

"I've done it before. They're proper dog biscuits," he said of Morgana's contribution.

"That really is weird Arthur," Elena said.

"Is it?" an innocent faced Arthur announced, looking down at the biscuit, genuinely very confused.

"Seriously have you tried all your dog's food?" Mithian asked, although she seemed to know the answer.

"Most of it," Arthur said casually. Gwaine watched, ran at him and launched himself up on his hind legs to such an extent that he overbalanced himself and rolled onto his back. The dog minders roared with laughter, Gwaine recovered and ran in a circle before coming back to Morgana. Feeling a little sorry for the dog, as the humans in the room laughed and she picked a biscuit from the tin leaning down to offer it to Gwaine. He sniffed it, wagged his tail, looked at the other dogs before grabbing the biscuit and running off. Leon and Percival looked at Morgana, tails moving gently, ears pricked as they slowly slunk forward. Gwaine grunted in satisfaction as he started to chomp on the treat.

"They're a hit," Arthur said as he handed the one he had partly eaten to Leon and gave another to Percival. He gave one to Gwen to give to Lancelot and then Arthur crouched down to Merlin. Arthur gave it to the lurcher, who took it in his jaws and hung onto it for a moment. Straightening up Arthur looked at Morgana.

"Sit down, I'll get you a drink, what would you like."

Morgana perched on the edge of a chair. "Just an orange juice, I'm driving," she said quickly. Arthur nodded.

"Okay, hang on." Arthur put the tin down on the table and wandered off to find what Morgana wanted. Elena reached in to distract Gwaine from hassling Morgana, she broke the biscuit up and started to tease the little dog, who went into a round of excited barking. Morgana thought it slightly mean but she couldn't really correct Elena, who clearly knew more than she did, and Gwaine didn't seem distressed.

"That box is lovely," Mithian said, more to fill the pause to ease Morgana than actually wanting to voice it.

"Very Christmassy, I couldn't find anything like that for love nor money," Elyan said. He looked embarrassed as Gwen raised her eyebrows.

"I keep them from other Christmases' and then reuse them. I'm sure I have a few Easter ones as well," Morgana said fiddling with the hem of her skirt at the same time. She relaxed her shoulders as Arthur returned with a glass of orange juice and the rest of the carton sitting in an ice bucket.

"It's just a sneaky way to not use wrapping paper," Arthur informed her.

"It also looks nice," Elena said. "I might have to start doing that."

"Boxes are good as well," Morgana said. "There is a girl in the admin pool who makes them, and decorates things, made to measure."

"Is that the one going on honeymoon?"

"Yes," Morgana said, a low blush starting to cover her cheeks. Arthur looked away, reaching to the orange carton to top up Morgana's half-full glass. The other clearly realised there was something going on between the siblings that they didn't want to talk about.

Gwaine distracted everyone by leaping into Elena's lap.

"There's nothing wrong with buying your Secret Santa recipient something nice."

"She said she couldn't afford a second week, but I made sure she got some inclusive deals for the week she was there," Morgana said, almost defensively to her brother. Arthur shrugged, picking up another dog biscuit, breaking it into pieces.

"Sounds nice, surely she appreciated it," he said before looked down at the dog at his feet. "Merlin?"

Merlin took the biscuit bit with his tail wagging. All four pairs of eyes stopped looking at the two Pendragon's and they went to the dog instead. Merlin snuggled close to Arthur as he chomped on the dog biscuit. Gwen reached to get another one for Lancelot. On Elena's lap Gwaine rolled onto his back and flailed his back legs as she rubbed his belly. Percival and Leon snuffled around until Elyan offered them another treat.

"How much weight do your dogs put on at Christmas?" Elyan asked.

"None, I spend a lot of time walking them," Arthur said. "Come on Merlin, do you want another one?" Merlin gazed up adoringly.

"It's so cute how clingy he is," Mithian said as Merlin sniffed the biscuit and then took another bite. Gwaine stopped flailing and watched from the comfort of Elena's lap. Morgana watched everything, seeing how comfortable the four people were in her brother's house, and she felt oddly out of place.

"Sorry?" Morgana jumped, snapping out of her contemplation as she realised Elyan had spoken to her.

"No," Arthur answered in her stead. "Pets are not Morgana's thing."

"I wouldn't have the time," Morgana added. "It wouldn't seem fair."

"Not dogs then, but maybe a cat, they do their independent thing."

"Or a goldfish, very little work," Elyan added.

Arthur privately wondered if his dog walkers were subtly taking the piss out of his sister. They had been there for some bad moments involving his family, but it did seem unfair to take it out on his nervous looking sister. Which meant that they were trying to include her, but Morgana, whether deliberately or not, sometimes made that hard.

"There's cleaning the tank," Arthur told Elyan, just as a slight warning, in case they were being mean.

"Ew!" Morgana grimaced, unaware of any interplay.

"There you go," Arthur concluded. "Not a pet person."

"Some people aren't." Gwen said as she rubbed Lancelot's ears. "And at least some people have the sense to acknowledge that, rather than just blundering into it and then realising it's actual work."

"True," Arthur conceded, petting Merlin, who snuggled closer, tail wagging. Arthur cuddled him.

"I don't know where Arthur gets it from," Morgana said, feeling a little uncomfortable about the discussion and wincing slightly as Leon ambled past her, heading off into the hallway, Gwaine cocked an ear in interest, but clearly felt far too comfortable in Elena's lap to bother investigating.

"You would," Arthur grumbled at Leon.

"I'll do it," Mithian said getting up and following in the dog's wake. They all heard sounds of insistent scratching.

"You're a guest," Arthur objected. Mithian shrugged.

"Picking up a bit of dog mess is hardly news to me. Aren't you very neat," she told Leon as she went out to find he had messed perfectly on the newspaper Arthur had left out. There was a rumbling bark from Leon, who agreed with this assessment and politely stayed with her while she tided up.

"Don't worry about it," Gwen told Arthur as he almost got up to take over from her.

"We never mind your dogs, they are the best behaved, Even you," Elena said to a floppy, contented Gwaine.

"I think we all have to be very proud of Arthur," Mithian announced as she returned, with Leon trotting next to her. "He took the dog run down."

"I did that months ago," Arthur pointed out.

"Only three," Mithian said sagely as she sat down again. Leon went over to Arthur as he reached into the biscuit tin again. Gwaine cocked an ear, and rolled slightly to assess the action, and he slowly slithered off Elena's lap in such a well-poised and comical fashion that even Morgana laughed.

The situation seemed to ease then and then the bell rang again.

"Aren't you popular tonight?" Gwen said.

Gwaine yapped and ran for the front door. Arthur looked quizzically at Morgana who looked embarrassed, but Arthur knew it wasn't his father. She'd warn him about that. Gwaine paced around the door yapping as Arthur went to answer it, Merlin following him.

"Gaius!" Arthur announced, without much surprise. If it wasn't Uther, then Gaius was the only family friend, and close enough to just turn up.

"I stopped by."

"It seems to be an evening for it," Arthur said stepping back to allow Gaius in. Gwaine fussed around, wagging his tail, Gaius held up a packet.

"I brought some treats, and also something for you, my boy."

There was also a box, neatly wrapped, which Arthur took.

"Thank you, everyone is in the living room. I've got my dog walkers and Gwen, my vet over."

"That's nice, it's good for you to socialise," Gaius said and he stomped off into the living room. "Good evening," he announced to the group and he paused to kiss Morgana before taking the armchair. Gwaine followed eyes fixed on the treat bag.

"Arthur, these poor dogs probably have to run marathons to work off their Christmas food," Elyan said.

"No they don't, although I do spend most of Christmas day walking," Arthur said. "Because I enjoy it."

"And I get stuck with dad, all day," Morgana said. "Which, actually wasn't meant to sound quite like that but..."

"Er, yeah," Elyan agreed. "Co-share of family obligations."

Gwen stuck her tongue out at him.

"Sorry, you know I..."

"I know," Morgana snapped at Arthur. "What annoys me is you thinking that I'm quite happy with it even if you're not, because I quite clearly don't have my own life to get on with."

That seemed to really kill the mood. In the end the group who he had invited didn't leave early. It was nearly eleven in the evening when they left and that was usually around the time Arthur wanted to settle down with the dogs, but for some reason it felt like they had been pushed out, even though they stayed for an hour talking about subjects which were safe and unassuming. Morgana listened to Elyan for twenty minutes as he told a story about a horse minding job he had done. And Arthur got the feeling Gwen and the others only hung on because they could sense he felt a little rattled.

In the end, however, Morgana and Gaius stayed longer, moving into the kitchen as Arthur tided up. Morgana helped a little and then sat down at the kitchen table. Gaius ran water into the sink to wash up. As he returned from the lounge with some more empty glasses Gaius' and Morgana's heated conversation ceased and Morgana rummaged in her bag.

"What is going on?" Arthur demanded.

Neither of them spoke, for a few seconds Morgana continued to rummage, dogs wandered around Arthur, sensing his tension and Gaius put a pile of plates into the sink. In the end Morgana pulled something out of her handbag and handed it to Arthur. He stared at it incomprehensibly for a second before his eyes widened.

"Oh," He said. "Oh, right then. What do we do?"


	8. Proper Work

**Finally got a chapter of something out. I have been very distracted trying to move house and not really writing much, but breaking through, now the worst stress is over, and just have to move in a few weeks. **

He had never before brought a dog.

But for some reason he had dressed Merlin in his blue coat, to contrast with his red collar, and put him in the car. The other dogs had milled around curiously, but as Arthur wasn't putting on his hiking boots and setting up his rucksack they knew it was nothing to do with a walk. It wasn't wholly unusual for him to take one or two of them out. And he wouldn't normally have dreamt of walking into the office with one.

Yet there he was; with Merlin trotting close by, walking over the threshold of the large building of his father's corporation. The one he should inherit, might inherit, if he wasn't though to be too mentally unstable to do so. Morgana was far better suited in their father's opinion. Arthur was starting to think his father's opinion didn't count for much, all things considered.

"Excuse me, dogs aren't allowed in here."

Arthur stopped, so did Merlin. He looked at the youthful security guard, who couldn't have been out of his teens. However, he looked past him to the older guard.

"Since a dog has never before tried to come into this building, I wonder how they got banned. Or has my father just told you all that rule to stop me doing it?" Arthur asked pleasantly pulling out his security pass which would take him into the building. He brushed past the stunned youth and let himself through the gate, Merlin still at his side.

"Er.. Sir..." the little security guard ran after him, glancing back at the older guard, who found someone else to hassle as they came in, rather than dealing with Arthur, who had a different, but similarly bad, reputation as his father.

"You're new here. Do I know you?" Arthur asked as he used his pass to call the executive lift. A few people he knew suddenly decided they wanted to get fit by taking the stairs. Arthur smirked to himself, the security guard watched the wave of discomfort with awe, although he seemed very un-phased by Arthur himself, and was clearly unaffected by any gossip.

"Yes, Sir, and yes, I saw you walking one day, I was out with my friends, and your dogs had a go at us."

Arthur thought about that and stared at the boy for a moment. "Ah yes, you said you liked dogs. And I do think your friends tried to start it. You weren't working here then?"

"No, Sir," the youth said and as the lift pinged open and Arthur stepped inside. The boy followed.

"Erm, I'm not sure you have clearance for the dog so..."

"And you like dogs. Sorry your name is?"

"Mordred, Sir."

"I'm Arthur," Arthur said holding out his hand, which Mordred shook. "And this is Merlin."

Merlin pricked his ears up and wagged his tail. Mordred reached out a hand and the ears and tail went down, causing Mordred to hesitate.

"He's fine," Arthur said, reaching down, putting a hand on Merlin's flank. "Sit, Merlin. Say hello."

Merlin sat and offered a paw which an enchanted Mordred took, shaking it carefully before letting go and petting Merlin's head.

"So what made you take this job?" Arthur asked. Mordred shrugged.

"My cousin Kara works in the admin pool, and she sort of put me up for it, and I thought it might have been cool."

"Cool? I know girl's love a uniform but... grey is pushing it," Arthur joked. Mordred started to flush, but he crouched to continue stroking Merlin as he said.

"I just thought... you know, you see it on telly, security guards have dogs..."

Arthur raised his eyebrows, but didn't laugh. It was a sweet thought, and he couldn't argue with it.

"Not in this type of building, but you never know." Arthur smiled at him and then turned as the lift drifted to the correct floor and the doors pinged open and Arthur stared at the chaos. "What the hell is going on? Stick with me," he told Mordred, who ran on his heels as close as Merlin was doing, at the order.

Arthur looked around at the people lurking around, doing nothing but listening to the sounds coming from his father's office. He knew the voices and as Arthur stopped to listen so did Mordred. Merlin gave a low growl and rather than speak, Arthur pulled on the lead slightly to keep Merlin under control. The dog went silent, but Arthur knew he was utterly alert.

"What's it about?" Arthur heard a new arrival ask.

"There's a book running, this one has been brewing!"

"I've seen her sobbing in the loos and she's been right funny lately. Madder than Arthur."

"Really?!" Arthur asked the nearby group. Several people turned to stare at him and then shrank under the Pendragon gaze.

"It's none of your business who the father is!" Morgana's voice screeched. Someone further down in the crowd announced.

"Yes! I told you she was preggers! You owe me money, Cedric!"

Arthur walked forward, Mordred on his heels and a snarling Merlin walking point parting the crowd for him using both surprise and aggression, until he found the secretary in question, who turned to stare at him with wide eyes. The rest of her friends shrank away from Arthur's glare, although they weren't able to go that far as Arthur said.

"Then perhaps you should have been preventing my father from upsetting a women who is pregnant, rather than just taking bets on it. And in fact if I don't find people's computers registering some kind of work within the next two minutes, I will be doing your monthly reviews."

Merlin snarled again, and barked at a few people before turning to stare at Uther's door, inching in that direction. Arthur glared at the work force.

"Mordred, please make sure people are working. I'll give you my Labrador two days a week if you can find me the people running this book."

Lancelot was the most amenable to such things and he was a sturdy, willing worker. Arthur got the feeling he was about to take charge in a way he hadn't before, and had avoided for a while. He caught up with Merlin, who looked both apprehensive and ready for the confrontation. Arthur flung the door open and wandered in, slamming it behind him.

His father had turned to him, clearly about to demand to know what the intruder in the office thought it was doing. When he realised it was his son Uther turned on the next thing he could attack as he looked down at a poised Merlin.

"What is that thing doing in here?!"

Merlin's ears dropped and he whined at the aggressive tone.

"I decided to bring him with me. What the hell are you doing?! and keep your voice down, the entire fucking floor is listening to every word you say."

"I'll fire them."

"You can't fire the entire workforce," Arthur said, "who will no doubt all be informed of this by the end of the day. I have said if I don't find their computers logged in and them working I'll be doing their monthly reviews. They found that very motivating."

"Are you going to find out whose running the book on what's wrong with me?" Morgana asked sweetly.

"Security are on that, I gave them a good incentive."

"How did you get that animal past them?"

Merlin's ears went back, and he lowered his shoulders, his eyes rising to look at Arthur, which girded Arthur more than his sister's cool eyes on him.

"I walked in. You might have told them to ban dogs from the building but they've never had to deal with it before now, and how do they stop the son of the CEO, who is a board member and an executive officer in his own right from doing as he wishes. And I have no idea why I brought him. After you kicked him, in my right mind, I shouldn't bring Merlin within six foot of you... oh... however, as far as you are concerned, I'm not ever in my right mind, but as that is because I never do as you say, rather than my actual real problems... I think we'll just skim that."

"This is not your concern, your sister..."

"I'm well aware of Morgana's pregnancy, she told me before Christmas," Arthur said breezily, "Just as she told me she was going to tell you today, which I presumed to mean that she wanted my back-up, which she has."

"She can't be involved in the company."

Arthur raised his eyebrows. "She's pregnant, not diseased. I have looked into her maternity rights and I can work now to take over when the cover is required. I do have an office here. I'm guessing it might be a bit dusty but..."

"You are not stable."

"I'm perfectly equipped. I prefer being at home and we can do that instead. However, as far as I can tell Morgana can work from home just as well as I can. In fact my role in the company is workable anywhere, and I've never had an issue with any of the clients."

"I gave you the more amenable ones!" Uther snapped. Merlin's ears perked up again and he pressed himself against Arthur, nudging his nose against Arthur's shin. The presence of that small, wiry form against his strengthened Arthur. He wasn't quite sure why, but Merlin, in his way, spent most of his time displaying faith in Arthur, and nothing but Arthur. It was quite humbling to think that this one being thought the sun rose and set on his command, and Merlin couldn't live without him. Merlin could be construed as clingy, Arthur decided he was merely faithful.

"If you think Bayard and Annis are amenable then you clearly see yourself in a similar light. I can handle them, most of the time what I can't handle is you."

"Arthur, I can do this... I know my rights, and what I need to do."

"I don't doubt it."

"You can't have an illegitimate child, like some whore!"

Morgana's jaw dropped. "I'm not a whore, he didn't pay for it!"

Arthur tensed as he saw Uther step towards her and Morgana leant back in the chair as she saw her father's hand raise. She moved her head, lifting it in defiance, almost daring Uther to follow up, which he would no doubt would have done if Merlin had not darted forward, using what Arthur had given him of the lead to snap at Uther's knee, causing him to step back in shock. Then the little dog put himself between Morgana and Uther, staring up at the man, snarling and snapping loudly, teeth bared and muscles tensed up, ready to pounce. Morgana stared at Merlin with just as much shock as Uther did. Arthur felt slightly startled, because Merlin was usually so timid; but now, with his muscles tensing, his body built up over months of Arthur's care, he looked lean, well built, and a little bit menacing.

"Merlin!" Arthur warned gently. He tugged the lead but Merlin refused to move. He sat down, withdrew his teeth but stayed between Uther and Morgana. "I would move back dad, he's not going to let you get to her."

"Can you not control your animals?!" Uther snapped, but he lowered his hand and took a step back. Merlin's aggression went down a notch.

"Yes I can, that's why he's sat down and didn't take a chunk out of you," Arthur said. He moved closer, unsure if he wanted to reassure Merlin or keep him controlled. As he stepped close to the little dog he seemed to relax and he turned to Morgana. Arthur could feel the Lurcher's tail batting against his calf muscles as Merlin inched forward towards Morgana, and although he didn't push to hard to reach her, Merlin sniffed intently at her navel. Morgana's hand had rested steadily on that area of her body and Merlin sat down, looked at her, and then got up to turn and stand by Arthur.

The standoff stopped and all three of them jumped as there was a knock at the door, it inched open slightly as Arthur turned and said.

"Come in!"

Mordred's head appeared, slightly tentative, but then his arm followed, clutching a small notebook in his hand.

"I got it," he said, at which point Arthur realised just how flushed and over-hyped he looked. "All of them, all their names and..."

"I know, I promised," Arthur said reaching out for the book which Mordred passed over.

"Promised what?" Uther snapped.

XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Proper work.

His first day back at 'proper work' and Arthur brought Merlin, and Leon. He had promised Lancelot but Leon at least had a pedigree, and Arthur had acquired him through his father, and Godwin, who felt incapable of giving the dog what he needed. The old man had loved the dog, Arthur had sent him updates and written regularly at the beginning, but in the end he realised as long as Leon was safe and well-cared for the intricacies day to day were not a concern for him. Arthur had felt insulted for Leon for a suitable length of time, then he just got on with it.

The point being. His father knew this dog, it was better bred than his others so Arthur brought him as Mordred's first reward.

"That's not a Labrador."

"No, Leon is a..."

"Red Setter," Mordred announced, sounding slightly annoyed. Arthur wasn't sure why. Arthur leant over to hand the lead to Mordred, who took it. Leon looked from Arthur to Mordred and back again.

"He's a little harder to work with, but he will obey commands. He's also got a proper pedigree and my dad might not throw that much of a wobbler as I got Leon from a business associate. Can you go to my car and get their stuff out? I've brought a bed for Leon, or any of them, to keep in your office. The little bed I need you to bring up to my office, and the small bag. The larger bag has stuff for Leon in it, toys, treats, plastic bags. He normally just walks out to do his toilet business, so if he tries to go out of the door just for no reason, assume that and take him out. See how you get on with him."

"Is that it?" Mordred asked as he held Leon's lead in one hand and Arthur's car keys in the other.

"Yeah, I need to get up there. He's fine. Leon stay."

Leon paused looking a little confused. He sniffed at Mordred, who held his hand out and let Leon examine him, then he carefully petted him. Leon took this slightly strange turn of events calmly, although he did attempt to follow Arthur, watching him go from the end of his lead as Mordred clung onto him. The older security guard watched with amusement. He didn't mind dogs, nor did he mind his new, innocent but enthusiastic new colleague. A combination of both would improve the entertainment of the usual run of the mill day. So would the appearance of Arthur, which had rattled everyone. The guard didn't mind him as a rule, Arthur was usually polite, remembered people's birthdays and didn't treat you as if you were below him.

Leon strained at the lead for a minute, then as Arthur disappeared he sat down and looked up at Mordred again. The dog wasn't unused to other people around him, so he took it quite calmly.

"Best get on with it lad," the older guard said. "Pendragons don't like to be kept waiting."

The guard and Leon waited patiently. People streaming into the building, gave Mordred a wary look.

"Right," said Mordred decisively. He turned, gently tugging on Leon's lead. Leon got up, taking the hint and Mordred headed out to the car park looking down at the dog with him, feeling quite awed.

Arthur felt quite the same about his office. It had recently been cleaned, but as he sat at his desk he felt as if it hadn't changed at all. Merlin sat by his chair, eyeing him curiously, leaning forward to rest his muzzle on Arthur's knee.

"I know it's strange, I'll take you for a walk at lunch time."

"I'm not doing it," a voice announced rudely. Arthur looked up at the young girl stood in the office doorway, looking down her nose at him.

"You're Kara?"

"Yes."

She was wonderfully unforthcoming after that, just staring at him. Merlin wriggled into the leg space of Arthur's desk and peered at her from under the front panel, giving an uncertain rumble.

"Good, your desk is there. You won't have that much to do today but you can get set up. I only have one appointment coming in today, but there's some typing you can do, and you can proof read the report that has been emailed to that computer. I left the passwords on a post it note on the desk."

"Right," she said, not moving for a minute. Until the older security guard appeared behind her.

"Excuse me."

She stepped aside, looking annoyed as he came in, carrying the bag, and Merlin's dog bed. Arthur got up and took them off him.

"I left Mordred setting up in our office."

"Leon's fine, unlikely to growl at anyone," Arthur told him, as he moved around the desk to set up Merlin's bed. Merlin came from out of the foot well and he carefully clambered into the bed. Arthur opened the bag and pulled out the red hoodie.

"There you go," he gave it to Merlin, who took it carefully in his mouth and proceeded to delicately move his paws around the bed to find a comfortable position to settle down.

"And not a Labrador," Kara announced rudely. Arthur looked at her in surprise.

"He's spend all last week reading up on them, and telling me. I know more about dogs now than I'll ever need to," the guard announced.

"Well, he'll just have to read about Setters," Arthur said, pulling out some pictures he had in a little folder, and he proceeded to start pinning them on the board to the left of his desk. It was then Arthur thought, he didn't have many of Merlin, the only one of the seven he pinned up that had the Lurcher in was one of him and Gwaine curled up asleep in the same small bed. Arthur smiled dopily as he pinned it up.

"Right, thank you," he said to the guard and then looked at Kara again who was staring at him as if he was idiotic. That was easy to deal with, he generally was, at least she was open about her opinion.

"I think your main job will be to remind me how an office works."

"It doesn't usually have dogs."

"You won't have to deal with Merlin, and Mordred only has a dog twice a week, he doesn't have to pay anything for it."

Kara snorted. "Some of the others in the office are now trying to get rid of him."

"Let me guess, the people running that book on my sister."

"They're always at it. Best thing to do is ignore them, and it's not as if anyone takes you seriously."

Arthur locked eyes with her, seeing the distain in them. Not because of who he was but because of the position he had put her cousin in, and in a way, Arthur had used Mordred's adoration of dogs against him. Arthur smirked at her.

"Again, making people take me seriously is your job. Are you up for it?"


	9. The Charm

How did her brother do it, Morgana seethed to herself, as she sat in her own office and watched through the blinds as Arthur chatted to Bayard. Merlin sat by Arthur, staring up and looking for all the world as if he was listening to the conversation. Morgana knew that had annoyed her father. He had tried to get Arthur to remove Merlin from the office while Bayard was here, but Arthur had refused to budge on the subject.

What had made everyone goggle was when Bayard arrived and Arthur had greeted him, and then the other man had looked down at the dog hanging by Arthur.

"And this is Merlin," Bayard said, gently and with some amusement. Arthur had smiled.

"Say hello Merlin."

Merlin had then obliged, holding his paw out, which Bayard had took. He had looked down at the dog and said.

"I was glad to know you were there that day."

Bayard had laughed heartily as Arthur had blushed at the memory. It had happened not long after Merlin had arrived and unlike the other dogs hadn't understood Arthur's time in the study. The other dogs seemed to realise that Arthur was busy and could not give his time. Arthur had also ordered them out before any Skype conversation had started. They seemed to understand that.

Merlin did not, and Arthur hadn't thought to shout at him. He had just lingered at Arthur's feet, staring up at him, ears moving as he listened to Arthur talk. Then curiosity had overtaken his patience and he had jumped up, putting his front paws on the computer desk to look at what held so much of Arthur's interest. He had been in conference with Bayard and Annis at the time, which was never an easy pairing to negotiate with, at least together. Both of them had stopped trying to talk over each other as Merlin's head had popped up, ears pricked curiously. He had regarded the computer screen, leaning forward, nose twitching, then he had looked at Arthur. Arthur, who had been trying to soothe both people had taken advantage of the silence and had carried on talking about the market projections without turning a hair and getting his own point across. At the same time, at the end of a sentence, he gently took hold of Merlin.

"Down now, Merlin."

He got the dog settled back on the floor, and with a little sigh Merlin rested his muzzle on Arthur's knee. Arthur carried on talking seamlessly to the other two, while patting Merlin gently on the head as he talked. After a few minutes Bayard had smirked and said.

"Arthur, I'm really glad to know that dog of yours is down there."

At that point Arthur paused. Annis had smirked slightly, and Arthur had looked down, blushing furiously, realising the movement of his hand could be completely misconstrued.

"So am I," he conceded after a moment causing both people to laugh, and they had come to a very amicable agreement, which had both surprised and pleased his father, who had no idea what had actually facilitated that reconciliation.

Now Bayard had been quite curious about the fact Arthur was back in the office, and the fact he had got Merlin in there.

"I'm sure we can certainly come to some further agreements."

"That's good to know," Arthur said. "I'll walk you down."

"So you can check on your dog downstairs? I presume that one is yours as well."

"I made a promise to the security guard minding him."

"Did it work in his favour?" Bayard asked as they stepped into the executive lift.

"Not really. My dogs love me, and tolerate the rest of the world. It takes a bit of work. My dog minders could tell him that."

"Something that people should think about before they buy a pet. I go from your knowledge on that."

"Do you?"

"My granddaughter begged for a pony, and she had to go through lessons, training days and mucking out to get one. My son thought I was being cruel, however, I found out I was being right. She didn't want to do any of the mucking out, she just wanted to ride, so I offered to pay for her lessons. She screamed, my son moaned and I knew I was right, thanks to you."

"You can't take on animals without commitment."

"However, with grandchildren, you can come to some arrangement; so when they get annoying, you can hand them back. You should perhaps expand your charity into that area, rather than just paying for other people's mistakes."

"Yeah, that's not a bad angle."

"Your young apprentice is on rather a learning curve," Bayard observed with some amusement as they reached the large lobby, and Mordred was trying to get Leon out of the lobby to take him for a walk. Leon seemed to be making rather a meal of the whole thing, making Mordred drag him. Clearly on principle Leon sat down. Arthur gave a chuckle, which Bayard mirrored, and he followed Arthur as he went over to Mordred.

Leon turned his head, and his tail swept against the floor as he saw Arthur. Getting up he proceeded to drag a red faced Mordred across the lobby. Most people passing through watched with amusement. Arthur just had eyes for Leon. The dog paused at his feet, sniffing Arthur's hand as he reached out, licking his fingers, tail wagging enthusiastically as if Arthur hadn't seen him for years. Mordred looked sweaty and flustered.

"Why does he always make it so hard?"

"I doubt he thinks of it like that. Do you want me to take him?"

Mordred looked ready to refuse, then he handed the lead over to Arthur.

"He's just going to follow you anyway!"

Arthur was about to say something reassuring, but he got the surprise of his life as Bayard reached out to put a gentle hand on Mordred's shoulders.

"Don't look at it like that. The dogs adore Arthur, they are always going to prefer him to anyone. Take heart from the fact that Arthur is willing to trust you with their safety and welfare."

Bayard was someone who could never seem to lower his voice. So the entire lobby heard what he said, and stopped smirking at Mordred's difficulty and realised that he was probably someone they might need, if they wanted to get to Arthur. Kara, his cousin, was proving very intangible when it came to influencing Arthur. In her own way she had become oddly protective of her boss, who hardly looked at what she did. As long as she typed things, sent emails and stopped people bothering him - which was her most important duty as far as Arthur was concerned - he left her to do her own thing. As long as she stopped his office door opening she could spent her time filing her nails rather than his admin.

Mordred nodded.

"Take a break, so up and see your cousin," Arthur said. Mordred nodding, looking around at the people watching the scene. As Arthur and Bayard did the same thing the people lingering in the lobby suddenly found they were very busy. As they stopped glaring at the rest of the world Arthur and Bayard caught each other's eyes and grinned. They turned to start walking again, but dogs momentarily hampered Arthur's way.

"Leon, get on that side."

Arthur dragged Leon to the other side, and he moved after some huffing. Then Arthur put Merlin on the inside between himself and Bayard. Merlin trotted along, and Arthur kept a careful hold of Leon on the other side, who could be a pain if he was wound up, and Mordred clearly wasn't getting on with him.

"What are you thinking?" Bayard asked.

"That I might bring Lancelot in for him tomorrow. He's a little better behaved, or slightly more friendly. Either way, he might be less embarrassing for him."

"For him or for you?" Bayard asked.

"Touche," Arthur said. "Both I guess. It was meant to be a treat and I don't think he's seeing that at a moment. Lancelot might be better."

"What about Merlin?"

"No, he's not the trusting type. He won't even go with the dog walkers, I have to keep him at home."

"And why he comes to the office with you I presume."

"A little bit. He's clingy, and I don't think he's going to get any better."

"You've left him at home with the others though."

"Yeah, but I often find him in the hall, with Gwaine keeping him company."

"Which is...?"

"The terrier," Arthur clarified. Bayard nodded.

"And you don't want to leave him all day, while you're out at work. So bringing another dog kind of lessens the impact."

Arthur shrugged. "Not sure. I don't like leaving Merlin, more than the rest of them. I try not to favour him but..."

"There's nothing wrong with having an extra special one," Bayard said, as they reached his car and the chauffer opened the door. He reached down to pet Merlin again, who gave a rumble before licking Bayard's hand. He raised his eyebrows and looked up at Arthur.

"I think I might be approved of."

Arthur smiled. "Of course. Merlin is an excellent judge of character."

Bayard straightened up and reached out to shake Arthur's hand.

"He is indeed."

Bayard had got into the car and driven off, and Arthur dealt with Leon's mess, that he made on the pristine space of lawn outside the front of the offices, and it wasn't until then he realised that it was a compliment to him. Arthur glanced at Merlin, who was watching him adoringly.

"I think we're a hit!"

Merlin wagged his tail warily.

"With whom?" a voice asked. Merlin bared his teeth and Leon moved a little closer, ears moving back slightly. Arthur gathered them both up, and Leon sat down. Merlin very slowly followed suit, making sure he stayed close to Arthur.

"Bayard."

"How did he go with the new terms of the contract?"

"Very amenable, although he wanted to alter the return by 0.5% but in return he extended the contract to five years not three."

Uther managed to look as impressed as he was ever going to get with either of his children. He was still hardly talking to Morgana, who was now watching the interaction between father and son from her office window. It looked far less congenial than Arthur and Bayard. This one was like to wary dogs circling, rather than Arthur's usual romping mob. She smirked wondering which breed of dogs could represent Arthur, Bayard and Uther.

"Well done. I hope he wasn't disturbed by the dog."

"Bayard likes my dogs," Arthur said. "Come on you two."

"Are you going to insist on bringing them with you all the time?"

Arthur paused again. "Merlin definitely. I'll being Lancelot in Friday. Mordred might like him better."

"You should not be showing favouritism," Uther said. Arthur stared at him.

"I'm not I made him a promise and I am honouring it. It's not as if it's easy for him, plus it's a valuable lesson."

"What is?"

"Be careful what you wish for," Arthur warned. "It can happen but never quite how you expect it, and most especially never how you want it."

With that Arthur left his shocked, and now slightly reprimanded, father and strolled off leading his dogs into the building and brightly informing Mordred that he was taking Leon up with him. Leon decided to sniff every inch of the building he could reach as Arthur pulled him along to his office. He settled in his chair feeling quite satisfied with himself. And he looked around the room, now complete with dogs. Merlin put his head on Arthur's knee, while Leon explored. Arthur petted his head.

"And if people seriously annoy me. I'll bring Gwaine in."

Merlin gave a low rumble. Arthur rubbed his ears.

"Exactly."


End file.
